Out Think, Out Smart, Out Gas Part 4
by Resurgent-class
Summary: Season 1 Story 8.1 Takes place in Season 1, between episodes #8 The Day Smart Turned Chicken and #9 Satan Place. Max and the Chief has had their fill of cold, ice and snow as KAOS executes its plans and moves in on their final objective! As Max and 99 keep SS-19 in sight, the Chief sets the trap to stop her robbery unit once and for all!
1. Chapter 1

**Out Think, Out Smart, Out Gas**

 **Part 4**

 **A Get Smart Fan Fiction**

 **By** **Resurgent** **-class**

 **Big wave and hello out to everyone here at Part 4! Seriously don't know how it got out of control (no pun intended) like this! Lol But better planning is in order for future fan-fics definitely. And to help in that, I hope you'll keep reading and sending those reviews! Thanks everyone!**

 **Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN ANY GET SMART ORIGINAL SERIES CHARACTERS**

 **CHAPTER 1**

"…We're gonna dieWe're gonna dieWe're gonna-die!We're gonna-dieWe're gonna die!…" Max whimpered incessantly, lips peeled back, bearing his teeth, eyes popping in horror as the interior of the trailer and the Land Rover he and 99 hid in were completely illuminated in blinding light, robbing them of the safety of darkness.

"Hayler!"

The flaxen haired KAOS agent stopped pulling on the door and looked quizzically over with arched eyebrows at the other semi to see the trailer's rear double doors completely opened and Specchi standing on the ramp.

"We-a already-a moved our things hya!"

"Gut! Gut!" Hayler nodded shoving the door shut with a resounding clang that echoed through the inside of the trailer.

"See, I told you nothing bad was going to happen!" Max shrugged at 99 who breathed in relief even as she rolled her eyes sideways at him in the gloom.

As the men behind him jumped off the ramp to head to the other vehicle, Hayler also jumped off and hammered his gloved fist on the side of the trailer shouting.

"Mikhail! Yuri! Cloze zer ramp!"

Inside the cab of the tractor unit, the driver and the passenger, both with thick black and red beards and hair heard the shout. The passenger with the red beard stuck his right hand out the window and gave a thumbs up while the black bearded driver flipped switch on the dashboard.

The ramp hummed and whined as it's leading edge rose off the floor and continued rising until the entire ramp touched the rear doors, covering them completely.

At the Northern end of the barn, 2 KAOS one lean and broad shouldered with dark brown hair and another taller and barrel chested with light brown hair in a buzz cut and neatly trimmed full beard, walked the large double doors open.

Lorenc now stood at the top of the ramp of the box trailer on the right. As the men ran up the ramp with their automatic weapons and into the box trailer, he hollered relentlessly at them.

"C'MOOOOOONNNN! MOVE IT! MOVE IT! PICK UP THOSE BOOTS YOU USELESS SHITS! MY GRANDMOTHER WITH ARTHERITIS AND ONE LEG MOVES FASTER THAN ALL YOU MAMA BOYS AND SISSIES! WHAT'S THE MATTER?!—" Lorenc's small dark glittering eyes brimmed with vindictive delight at his authority and power as he stared down each of them as they ran by while pouring on the verbal abuse and insults, his huge mouth barely closing at all. "—YOU ALL NEED YOUR MOTHERS DA HOLD YOUR HAND?! IS THAT IT?! IS THAT IT?! YOU ALL WANNA GO BACK HOME TO YOUR MAMAS AND CRY INTO HER APRON SOMEMORE?! MOVE IIIIIIIIIT!"

At the office, SS-19 emerged, having changed from her black dress into a form fitting black jumpsuit with the legs tucked into knee high, black leather boots. A utility belt with her Luger hugged her lean waist and in place of the cartwheel hat, she now wore only a black silk draped turban on her head from which hung the black veil. She held two gray plastic cylinders each one about a foot long, in one of her gloved hands. Holding the office door open, she called to the Hungarian KAOS agent manning the sensors.

"Lacza! Ideje, hogy menjen."

The KAOS agent at the console immediately slapped several switches on the controls and a loud _bam_ echoed through the entire barn as all the lights went off, plunging the interior into complete darkness save the light form the opened doors. With his submachine gun in one hand, he jogged out of the office and headed towards the rear of the right side semi.

"Once they load up the other truck completely, it's our chance!" Max declared as he and 99 got out of the Land Rover and put their ears to the right wall of their trailer to listen.

SS-19 hopped down from Mikhail and Yuri's tractor unit cab and as she climbed onto the other one, pulling herself up to the window with the one cylinder left in her gloved hand, she called to the Northern door beckoning with her free hand.

"Yakovlevich! Baidukov!"

Both KAOS agents ran from the door towards the other semi. The floor of the trailer reverberated through Max and 99's feet and boots and up their legs as the massive diesel engine roared to life, like a monster that had slumbered for too long and now rejoiced at it's awakening.

Yakovlevich and Baidukov dashed up the ramp past Lorenc who roared with relentless malice and abusive delight at them.

"WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH YOU TWO PISS HEADS?! YOU THINK YOU'RE SPECIAL OR SOMETHING?! HUH?! HUH?! DID YOU JUST LOOK AT ME?! I'M TALKING TO YOU! YOU WITH THE STINKING DIAPER AROUND YOUR KNEES! DID YOU LOOK AT ME BOY?!"

With his roar echoing now inside the confines of the trailer, Lorenc finally joined them and pulled one side of the trailer's double door shut.

SS-19 hopped down from the cab and walked in front of the two semis, looking left and right to ensure there was no one left behind. Then she turned and walked swiftly down the length of the semi between the two vehicles. As she reached the end, she slapped a gloved hand on the side of the trailer calling out.

"Leoni! Ireson!"

Inside the cab, Ireson in the driver's seat with a gray beard and hair started up the engine while in the passenger seat, Leoni, the French KAOS agent who had been arguing with Hayler earlier, now with a blond beard and hair, flipped a switch. Even as the ramp started to rise, SS-19 hopped onto it and disappeared into the trailer pulling the remaining side of the double door shut with more than enough time to spare before the ramp rose completely over them.

"Now!" Max declared and they both ran to the head of the trailer.

Max jumped grabbing the ladder and began climbing up towards the hatch in the ceiling.

Both semi's engines purred loudly as Yuri and Leoni both exited their tractor unit's cabs and ran over to the open doors of the barn. Mikhail and Ireson both stepped down onto the clutch of their vehicles and both W900s moved forward towards the barn doors in unison.

Max's shoes slipped off the rung on the ladder due to the violent lurching of the Kenworths and he was left dangling by his hands twelve feet up in the air. 99 a few rungs beneath him cried out as she saw him hanging precariously.

"Max! Be careful!" she yelled, her entire body shaking as she struggled to hang on as the Kenworths rolled towards the entrance.

Max struggling, managed to pull himself up and get his feet back on the rungs and as the trailer shook and bounced, he continued his climb and finally reached the hatch.

"Just a second!" Max yelled down to 99 as he struggled with the lock on the hatch.

It took him a few seconds but he finally got it opened and he pushed it up, sticking his head up through it.

Max found himself looking in the direction of the Kenworth's passage—just as both tractor units passed through the barn door.

Max's eyes popped as he saw the top of the barn door hurtling towards him. Risking premature decapitation, he took the time to yank the hatch back down as he dropped down his head back inside just as the trailer passed through the door with barely an inch to spare between the top of the door and the roof of the trailer.

Inside the trailer, Max was half clinging and half squatting on the ladder as their world shook as though an earthquake was tearing down their building. 99 hooked an arm round a rung and hung on, afraid to try to climb the 4-5 rungs back to the trailer floor as the violent jerks of the trailer threatened to throw her off at any moment.

As both semi's trailers finally cleared the barn entrance, Leoni and Yuri both ran out pulling their side of the large double doors together as they did until both sides met. They slammed the external bolt on and swiftly padlocked it before making a dash after the departing trailers which were still maintaining a sufficiently low speed for them both to catch up. Leoni and Yuri managed to jump onto the steps of their respective tractor units and pulled themselves in.

Once their co-drivers were securely inside the cab, Mikhail and Ireson stepped down on the gas pedals sending the two Kenworth semis surging forward with greater power, their heavy suspensions and all terrain tires handling the ground effortlessly.

Ireson's red Kenworth tractor unit pulled ahead of the dull matte gray one driven by the black bearded Mikhail when they were about 50 feet from the dirt road though the Russian KAOS agent did not slacken his vehicle's speed.

Ireson's W900 reached the dirt road and made a right turn onto it. It was followed a second or two later by Mikhails tractor unit, swinging smoothly onto the road, it's box trailer curving smoothly as it followed before straightening quickly, matching the tractor's course.

"Aaaaarrrghhh!" both Max and 99 yelled as the momentum of the turn caused them to swing on the ladder to their left.

99's boots slipped off the rungs and she was left clinging by her gloved hands while her booted feet dangled 4 to 5 feet off the trailer floor. Further up near the roof of the trailer, Max swung to the left, both feet flying off the rungs and he was left handing by his left hand alone.

Both Kenworths arrowed down the dirt road with Mikhail's tractor unit just 3 to 4 car lengths behind the rear bumper of Ireson's box trailer.

Inside Mikhail's box trailer, Max finally managed to grab the ladder rungs with both hands and get his footing along with 99. The gyrations of the trailer was steadier now and although their hands and feet still vibrated on the rungs, they could hold on without too much problem.

"Ninety-Nine!" Max called back down. "We must be on that dirt road! But I think they're going too fast for us to jump, even if we get out! Let's get back down first!"

"Right Max!" 99 called back at him and they both descended the ladder.

As they stood on the vibrating floor of the trailer, resting with their backs against the right wall, 99 noted.

"They should be headed for Copper Road that leads to the highway."

"And they're in—a hurry!" Max noted from the pace.

The W900s kept tearing down the dirt road spewing snow and soil as they moved. Max and 99 noted the road had a number of turns and windings which the drivers took with exceptional skill and no reduction in speed, nearly tossing them badly a few times till they realized it was safest to get back inside the second Land Rover where they had been earlier.

Soon in the darkness ahead, lights could be seen moving perpendicular to them in both directions. Leoni lifted a walkie-talkie and mashed the PTT, talking through his blond beard.

"Jäger Two to Jäger Le commandant. Copper Road, en vue. Turning in twenty secoons."

Inside the trailer of Ireson and Leoni's tractor unit, SS-19 stood with her back against the second of two Land Rovers, the first being dark green and the second a matt brown in colour. The men were lounging on the floor along both walls of the trailer, sitting on sleeping bags which they have laid out.

SS-19 held her walkie-talkie in her right gloved hand but the men in the trailer with her did not hear what Leoni had reported. There was an audio jack inserted into the communication device and the wire snaked upwards over the rise of SS-19's breasts and her chest outlined by the snug fit of her black jumpsuit and continued onwards under the hem of her veil where hidden from view, the IEM was fitted inside her ear canal where Leoni's report filtered through. SS-19 lifted the walkie-talkie and spoke.

"Acknowledge."

Reaching the meandering two way Copper road, Ireson pulled the large steering wheel clockwise, executing a right turn onto it, joining the sparse traffic.

Inside the Land Rover, Max and 99 felt themselves tilting to the left.

"Copper Road." Max noted.

The two Kenworths purred smoothly along the winding road with headlights of vehicles arrowing by in the opposite direction on the road to the left of the driver's side.

Somewhere further ahead, on a small side trail joining Copper Road in the direction of the highway, Ancaster sat in a black 1965 Ford Mustang. He held a pair of high powered binoculars to his eyes. Via the amplified field of vision of the binoculars, he watched the various cars, pick-ups and other vehicles cruising up and down the winding road.

The ex-CONTROL agent sat up as something caught his attention, his fingers adjusting the focus on the binoculars expertly. He could see the lead red Kenworth W900 now, long before they could catch sight of him. Sweeping downwards with the binoculars, he noted the license plates and chuckled to himself.

Then placing the binoculars on the passenger seat alongside another device, he started up the car's engine and drove the Mustang onto the road smoothly. He turned right, fusing flawlessly into the flow of the traffic.

The traffic was not that heavy making it easy for Ancaster to see the incoming Kenworth's in his rear view mirror. They were cruising relatively fast and many cars made way for them. As he watched, the two W900s closed in behind him to about 2 car lengths and their radiator grills began filling his rear view mirror. Accordingly, he veered off to the right smoothly allowing the first Kenworth to pass. Expertly, he moved to the extreme right of the road so he could see up into the cab of the lead W900 as it moved by while his fedora brim made it impossible for the KAOS agents to see his features, even if they did recognize him.

After the first W900 passed, the second one followed suit and as he did with the lead W900, Ancaster easily noted the license plates, the drivers in them and the company logos painted on the sides of their trailers. Then keeping them in view, he dropped a few more car lengths back to avoid suspicion, allowing other vehicles to get in between him and his quarries, smirking to himself all the while at the ease with which his next payday was coming.

Max and 99 seated inside the stationery pale gray Land Rover could feel the Kenworth negotiating the gentle meanderings of Copper Road.

"Max, do you think they'll slow down when they get to the highway?" 99 enquired as they rocked gently along with the secured Land Rover.

"The way these guys are driving, I really doubt it. And we're too far from our car now da follow em." Max shook his head. "But we'll get to Denver before ten at this rate."

"On the bright side, we'll be able to keep the Chief updated right to the point we arrive in Denver." 99 pointed out.

"That's right." Max nodded in the dim light. "And worst comes to worst, we'll sabotage this truck and it'll effectively disrupt their plans."

"Even if it means revealing ourselves and resulting in our horrific, painful deaths." 99 nodded.

Max opened his mouth to confirm but froze for a moment, mouth still opened. Then he lifted a finger and said.

"On second thought—the Chief has worked really hard to set up a trap and it would just be WRONG if we let it go da waste! So it's better if we just stay put."

As the W900s negotiated the final curve in Copper road, an almost unbroken length of moving lights appeared in the distance.

Leoni raised his walkie-talkie and spoke through his blond beard and his voice filtered through the IEM inside SS-19s ear canal.

" _Jäger Two to Jäger_ _Le commandant. Trois minute to zee highway_."

SS-19 in the trailer spoke into her walkie-talkie.

"Understood. Are zhere many cars behind us?"

Leoni glanced over at the side mirror at the headlights of cars behind them.

"Absolument. Several huv been with us zince we veached Copper Road. Vut I cannot tell eh, which one for certain, iz following us."

"Understood." SS-19 answered. "Proceed upon veaching highvay."

As cars gave way to them, the fork in the road leading to the highway came into view. Ancaster applied some gas pushing the 1965 Mustang forward and smoothly overtook a station wagon in front of him to get within 3 car lengths of the dull matte gray W900. He kept to the side so he could keep both of the W900s in view.

His eyes squinted in response as the red W900 suddenly surged forward smoothly leaving it's following dull matte gray companion behind. As Ancaster watched, the lead semi followed the most direct fork at the end of Copper road, cut across the south/south east bound lane of the highway before turning left onto the north bound lane beyond it. The ex-CONTROL agent's glittering eyes watched the red W900 put on more power as it surged north. His eyes narrowed as the gray tractor unit ahead of him, instead of following it's companion, turned into the right hand fork in Copper road and turned right into the south/south east bound lane of the highway.

Ancaster had both vehicles in his sight as his mind calculated the odds and scenarios even as he smirked and chuckled dryly to himself.

"Toupees, fake beards, new license plates and now THIS. You have a LOT to learn from the grown-ups little girl!—When in doubt, follow the LEADER."

With that, the Mustang arrived at the fork and Ancaster drove across the south east bound lane of the highway and turned smoothly onto the northbound lane, keeping SS-19's W900 within 4 car lengths in front of him.

99 looked up inside the Land Rover.

"Max?" she wondered. "Isn't…isn't Denver northeast of here?"

"I think so. Why?"

"I could have sworn we've turned right, which is…I think south."

"Long as we're on Colorado State Highway Ninety-One it's ok." Max shrugged nonchalantly with one hand on the Land Rover's steering wheel. "They can turn back onto the I-Seventy anytime they like. They're probably just making sure they're not followed."

Ireson shifted through the gears as the windshield wipers dashed aside the snow. His focused eyes saw what was ahead and he pulled the steering wheel clockwise executing a smooth veering onto another fork on CO-91 which veered them further North.

Ancaster's Mustang sped along and he effortlessly made the same turn and he saw the semi put on more speed as it's course straightened.

"In a hurry da get to the I-Seventy huh." Ancaster smirked. "Just like I thought. The Denver mint."

The red tractor unit continued travelling down CO-91 in it's own direction as snow kept pouring down onto the state highway. Yuri raised his walkie-talkie as Mikhail drove on almost without blinking.

"Jäger Four to Jäger Leader. We are twenty minut to E-D-Forty execution."

SS-19's voice filtered through the walkie-talkie.

" _Priznannyy, Jäger Four. Inform me vunce eet ees complete."_

Max sighed in the dark as the Land Rover jerked and rocked to the rhythm of the trailer as it cruised along.

"I suppose we'd better tell the Chief what's going on. I'm not looking forward to this."

"You're afraid he'll be disappointed in us?" 99 asked, her head tilting to cause her hair to slide over the shoulder of her parka and the blue of her eyes to somehow catch the minute light inside the trailer.

"No, my shoe still feels like a block of ice." Max grimaced rubbing his ear.

"Max, your T-Thirty-Seven." 99 suggested.

"Oh that's right." Max noted lifting his left wrist. "Lemme get the earpiece."

"Oh here Max! I have one for my compact phone and it comes with double ear pieces." 99 suggested rummaging in her leather handbag.

Max plugged the audio jack into his Wrist Communicator T-37 and pushed one of the IEMs into his ear while 99 used the other one.

"This is Eighty-Six calling CONTROL. This is Eighty-Six calling CONTROL. Come in CONTROL. Yes, patch me through to the Chief."

Inside the Denver Mint's command and control centre, surrounded by Mint Police still manning their consoles and CCTV readouts diligently, the Chief heard the beeping from his own T-37 and put the already jacked in-ear monitor into his ear canal.

"This is the Chief! Max! What happened?!" the Chief exclaimed, finger on the in-ear monitor as he spoke. "I expected to hear from you over an HOUR ago!"

"Yes right." Max replied. "Uuuuh, sorry bout' that Chief. We ran into electronic surveillance and it took us a bit longer da infiltrate the hideout. But we did it!"

"Good! Good! What's the situation now?" the Chief spoke with some relief.

"KAOS is on their way as we speak!" Max declared.

"What? Hinkel said the heist was timed for ten pm! They're going to be early." The Chief noted looking at the time. "Something must have caused them to move up their timetable. Do you have them in sight? The traffic is bad at this time, so don't lose them."

99 sighed at what the Chief said as Max looked about their surroundings his own finger pressed to his IEM.

"Eeeeeh…well Chief. I can promise you that is NOT going to happen."

"Well done! Now this is…" the Chief stopped himself and frowned. "Max? WHAT do you mean by that? What's that noise in the background?"

"Uuuuuhhh…"

Years of experience caused the Chief to close his eyes and bow his head, stating.

"Don't tell me—you're INSIDE one of the Kenworth trucks."

"Okay Chief, I won't." Max promised.

"But you ARE aren't you?" the Chief murmured in dismay, shaking his bowed head.

"Eeeeehhhh…."

"What happened Max?!" the Chief asked at a complete loss.

"It's a long story involving how bathrooms doors and trailer doors having the same locking mechanisms. You see…"

"I change my mind, I DON'T want to hear it!" the Chief declared. "Have you been discovered? Are you prisoners?"

"No Chief, we're fine! They have no idea we're tagging along with them right to Denver!" Max assured.

Taking a deep breath, the Chief gathered his focus once more.

"Alright! Since you're there, you might as well give us the tactical assessment. What are we dealing with?"

"S-S-Nineteen has replenished her robbery unit. We counted about seventeen, eighteen men with her now moving with these two trucks." Max reported. "That's not including their advance team of Gerd, Kerstine and an unknown number of KAOS agents who were already enroute to Denver beginning as early as ummm…half past five."

"We're watching everyone who comes into the Mint. They won't be able to get past us." The Chief assured. "What about firepower? Equipment."

"Handguns and automatic weapons." Max confirmed. "A mixture of Walther M-P-Ls, F-Ones, Beretta M-Twelves and a few MP Forties. They have their modified hazmat suits and G-P-5 masks of course. We don't see any tanks containing Super Sleep, at least inside our truck but it's likely with the advance team, like the museum."

"Understood." The Chief nodded. "Vehicles?"

"Chief, Ninety-Nine here." 99 put in. "If they've made modifications to the semi's it's not visually apparent. They've got two Land Rovers in this truck. They likely have at least another pair in the other."

"Of course." The Chief thought. "There won't be any room for them in the trailers once they load it with bullions. But Land Rovers? Off-road vehicles."

"That's right Chief." Max nodded "Together with these off-road capable semis, I'm thinking after the heist, their escape route takes them east towards the mountains."

"Where they'll likely have some form of airlift awaiting them." The Chief deduced. "Max, where is your location now?"

"Uh, we're on state highway Ninety-One." Max stated. "We're headed south for now but SS-Nineteen is paranoid or maybe KAOS got wind of Ancaster so she's doing some form of loop to confuse possible tails."

"It would make sense." The Chief noted pulling a pad from his pocket and a pen. "Look. I'll have the State Patrol keep watch over the trucks and intervene only as a last resort. If they have Super Sleep with them, it's better we confront them here at the mint where we're prepared with the antidote. Give me the descriptions of the two trucks."

"Well Chief, she's kept the original paint job for the tractor units. SS-Nineteen and her men are inside the red one and we're in the gray. But she's changed the license plates as we figured. The gray one has California plates, SAM-Five-Seven-Two. The red one has New Jersey plates, R-Y-Z-Three-Five-Six. You gat that Chief?"

"Yes." The Chief scribbled. "What about the trailers? Any company logos on them?"

"Oh yeah." Max nodded. "They've changed that too. When they purchased them from Buckman's Autos they were plain but now the gray tractor unit's trailer is painted blue with yellow letters on it that reads _Universal Furnishings & Fixings_. The red unit has an orange trailer with purple and red letters, spelling out _Melnick's Home Entertainment & Electronics_."

The Chief scribbled it down quickly into his note pad, noting.

"I'll get the descriptions to the C-S-P as well as our men here..." The Chief paused and frowning at the pad. "Universal Furnishings and Melnick's Home Entertainment?"

"Yes Chief, I was disappointed too." Max pouted. "I was hoping da get my next colour TV from Melnick's. Now I'm wondering if it's a KAOS front. But then, long as they give a great bargain and five year warranty…"

"That's NOT the point Max!"

"Is something wrong Chief?" 99 queried, leaning towards the T-37 on Max's wrist.

"Well…" the Chief looked up continuing to frown as his mind worked through the analysis. "These two companies ARE based in New Jersey and California but their market in Colorado is limited. They couldn't have more than a dozen trucks in the state at any time. You'd think they'd pick companies which are more commonplace here. _Pine & Cedar's Home Furnishings, Jupiter Electronics, Blue Mist Home Steaks & Barbeque, Henry's Fishing and Camping Supplies_…they're huge in Colorado with large fleets of delivery trucks based in Denver, Jefferson, Boulder and Eagle County areas alone. Universal Furnishings and Melnick's Home Entertainment's logos would be easy to spot on the roads here.—Anyway, KAOS may have made a slip to our advantage."

"I hope so too cause my current TVs' really on the fritz. Dean Martin looks like he's got a powdered wig on." Max declared.

99 sensing that the Chief at the other end was already pinching the bridge of his nose to ease his migraine quickly asked.

"What else do you want us to do Chief?"

"Well." The Chief said as he lowered his fingers from the bridge of his nose. "Is there any way you can monitor where you are?"

"Well, there's a hatch in the roof of the trailer here." Max replied looking up out the Land Rover's windshield. "But we've almost killed ourselves trying to reach it while the trucks are moving. And we have no idea where the other truck is at any time. If they're anywhere but in front of us, the drivers could spot us if we stick our heads out."

"Alright then. Stay hidden for now." The Chief decided. "We have the jump on KAOS this time so let's maintain the advantage. Contact me again if anything else happens."

"Right Chief." Max nodded.

Ireson's boot remained firmly pressed on the accelerator maintaining a constant speed for the red W900 tractor unit as it continued down the I-70 with the glittering Tenmile Creek running alongside to their right. Leoni next to him pointed ahead as they came upon another W900 semi.

"Oi sey it." Ireson nodded pulling the steering wheel to the left.

Their red tractor unit veered smoothly to the right and with a gentle nudge of the accelerator, they overtook the Kenworth in front of them which hauled a white box trailer with black and red wordings "JUPITER _ELECTRONICS_ CORP." on it.

Before they went even 200 feet, they came upon the rear of another box trailer being pulled by another Kenworth semi and Ireson easily negotiated it, passing it on it's right. The fanciful advertisement poster on the side of this Kenworth's trailer flashed by depicting a cheerful cartoon fisherman decked out in hip-waders and outdoor wear, hoisting a huge fish from the river on a rod and in bright blue and green letterings under the fish stating "HENRY'S FISHING & CAMPING SUPPLIES _"._

Ancaster's glinting eyes remained unwavering and locked on the license plate on the rear bumper of the KAOS's semi's box trailer and the trailer's distinctive orange sides with the purple and red letters for "Melnicks Home Entertainment & Electronics". He veered his Mustang away from another semi that appeared behind him to his right, putting on a burst of speed to get away from it so he did not get trapped behind it. Ahead, he could see the KAOS semi bypassing another semi, this one a needlenose, Peterbilt 281 tractor unit hauling a box trailer with the green and brown wordings of "PINE & CEDAR's HOME FURNISHINGS" on it, surrounded by cartoon pictures of comfortable sofas, armchairs, recliners etc. Ancaster kept within 4 car lengths of his quarry but realized there was another red W900 tractor unit behind him honking to pass. Scowling at the minor annoyance, he veered to the right allowing the massive vehicle to pull past him on his left, the black and red wordings on it's trailer spelling "JUPITER _ELECTRONICS_ CORP." flashing by as it did. Fortunately, it did not affect his view as this semi moved ahead quickly and the KAOS semi allowed it to pass.

"It's goin to be a bit crowded from ere' on." Ireson's cockney accent emitted from his beard as they began negotiating a curve to the right.

"Juzzer make zure we don't go SPLAT beeterveen two big tlucks oui?" Leoni grumbled.

"Oi can andle' tis big boy in me SLEEP yana?" Ireson nodded as he negotiated the turn and over took another red W900 tractor unit for Jupiter Electronics on their left.

"Pas de sommeil! Pas de sommeil!" Leoni exclaimed leaning to his right as the W900 took the turn a little too fast for his liking. "You going to get us killlt you stupide anglais!"

"Wassy!" Ireson laughed as he turned the steering wheel counter-clockwise to steer past a metallic grey Peterbilt 281 hauling a double trailer for " _BLUE MIST HOME STEAKS & BARBEQUE" _in red, brown and yellow letterings.

"Merde!" Leoni cursed as the letterings flashed by in a blur of red, yellow and brown on his side even as they continued to negotiate the turn in the road.

Ancaster chuckled to himself as his black Mustang sped along the curve veering past cars, vans and other semi-trailers to keep himself within range of his quarry.

"Yeah right!" he muttered satisfactorily under his breath. "Increasing speed. That'll work nice against a two time winner of the Lamont Cranston Award for Shadowing."

Ireson's red W900 finished the curve but due to the meandering nature of the I-70 at this juncture, he immediately started on another curve, even longer and towards the left. The number of semis increased further and he had to veer past one almost every 100 feet.

"Jäger Two to Jäger Le commandant!" Leoni sputtered into his walkie-talkie through his beard as the speed pushed him back into his seat. "We yar DEUX minute from za tunnel!"

" _Compris_ _Jäger Two_ _." SS_ -19's smooth voice filtered over the walkie-talkie's speaker. _"_ _Essayez de rester à environ quatre à cinq longueurs de voiture du véhicule le plus proche._ _"_

"Anglais! Stay four to five cars from nearest vehicle!" Leoni repeated at Ireson before mashing the PTT and shoving it towards him.

"Got you guv'nor!" Ireson yelled at the proferred walkie-talkie.

Ancaster's eyes squinted even further as he veered out from behind another red W900 tractor unit, this one belonging to Pine & Cedar's Home Furnishings and saw what laid ahead. Starting about 200 to 300 feet before the road entered the apex of it's curve, a tunnel began due to an enormous hill off to the right side of I-70 at this point which had to be tunnelled through. The tunnel covered the entire main curve and continued for another 200 to 300 feet before ending. His target was less than 50 feet from it now and there were already several semis ahead of it entering the tunnel, disappearing into the darkness. He could just barely make out the movement of lights from the head and tail beams of the vehicles already inside.

"Not even close!" Ancaster sneered, making his rich gray goatee and connecting moustache expand.

As he expected, his quarry suddenly put on a surge of power and moved on ahead, leaving a cloud of exhaust and snow in it's wake as it veered past another red W900 belonging to Blue Mist Home Steaks & Barbeque, to plunge into the darkness, reducing it's form to the glow of it's rapidly fading tail lights.

Ancaster stepped down on his accelerator and the Mustang powered forward effortlessly. He veered past and overtook two other gray and black tractor units and whipped past the Blue Mist Home Steaks W900 just as everything went black for a second.

The world suddenly transformed into hundreds of yellow and red glows, from head lights and tail lights respectively. Ancaster could barely make out the position of his quarry. Reaching over the passenger seat, he grabbed the device lying next to the binoculars; a long CONTROL-modified night-vision scope which he 'liberated' just before his dismissal right from under the Chief's nose. The memory of this made Ancaster smile even as he looked through the night-scope as he drove. His vision was plunged into a green world spotted with blazing novas of vehicle lights. Most agents would not dare use it in such conditions which risked temporary blindness or worse. But Ancaster scoffed at such amateurs as he drove with one hand and kept looking carefully through the scope, simply closing his eye if a blaze of a headlight flared without compromising his vision.

With expert timing, he spotted the KAOS W900 again and noted it's position. With that, Ancaster tossed the night-scope aside blinking away the after image and he veered to the right past the glowing red rear lights of another semi and over took it and various cars to maintain his range.

" _Procéder."_ Came the command from the walkie-talkie in Leonie's hand.

"Right Don!" Ireson confirmed and his right hand slapped a white button on a separate control panel installed near the bottom edge of the dashboard.

Under the chasis of the tractor unit, there were two ellipsoidal tanks specially installed, positioned in between the last set of wheels near the rear bumper. Each of these tanks had 2 rear-pointing nozzles which immediately responded to the white button by belching out matching snow coloured smoke.

The white cloud spread out underneath the tractor trailer behind and began billowing out to the sides and backwards like a wall of mist surging in from the sea. Almost every driver in whatever vehicle in the tunnel began leaning on their horns so hard the blaring almost overrode the engines in the enclosed tunnel. Vehicle after vehicle of all sizes found their entire windshield view filled with the billowing white fog.

Ancaster saw the incoming cloud and smirked.

"Getting desperate huh?"

He simply leaned on the accelerator and plunged right into the cloud, causing a hole to swirl into existence from his vehicles passage though it closed almost immediately behind him. Ireson inside the red W900 was already flicking a black switch on the control panel. Instantly, a precise humming began which could only be heard by those inside the cab. On the sides and front end of their box trailer, something began lowering from the top edges. Unseen to any observer, there were thin black cylinders built into the top edges, the exact lengths of the sides and the width of the front end of the trailer. From these cylinders, a thin film like material began unrolling itself. The leading edge was a thin metal rod, guided at it's tips by special unseen grooves at the vertical edges of the sides and front ends of the trailer. The film like sheet continued lowering until it reached the bottom edge of the sides and the front end of the box trailers, completely covering up the existing orange background and purple and red letters, spelling out _Melnick's Home Entertainment & Electronics_ that had decorated the sides and the front end of the trailer.

Ireson's box trailer display had been transformed into a white background with the black and red wordings "JUPITER _ELECTRONICS_ CORP." on it, as was the front end which had the word "Electronics" within a swirling ribbon like graphic.

At the same time, the license plates at both front and rear bumpers of the tractor unit and the rear bumper of the box trailer, flipped forward to reveal it was actually installed on a rolling rectangular mechanized block. The plates reading "N.J RYZ – 356" now rolled underneath to be replaced by the next face of the rectangular block which read "GAA-427 Colorado".

The interior of the cabin was a flurry of movement as well as Ireson and Leoni whipped off their zipped up black leather jackets to reveal different light coloured wind breakers underneath over heavy red or black turtle necks with Ireson expertly manipulating the wheel with just one hand as he removed his jacket.

They yanked off their toupees and fake beards as well, tossing them all onto the floor, Leoni revealing a buzz cut and neat honed dark brown stubble over his chin, upper lip and sides of his square jawed face while Ireson sported a centre parting cut of ginger hair, a clean shaven hard cheek boned face with narrow jaws and a hooked nose. As Leoni slapped off the smoke screen and disappeared through the curtain into the sleeper cab behind their seats, Ireson finished his get up by slipping a pair of black aviator glasses on over his gray eyes while pushing down on the accelerator to put distance between him and the dissipating whirl of the smoke screen.

"Jäger Two to Jäger Le commandant." Ireson could hear Leoni reporting from behind the curtain. "E-D-Forty executed."

" _Gut. Tell Ireson, c_ _e devrait être le premier véhicule à travers la fumée_ _."_

Leoni repeated the instruction in English to Ireson.

"Goddit Don!" Ireson yelled over his shoulder as he turned the steering wheel continuing on the curve inside the tunnel, almost half way through and managed to overtake another W900.

In his side mirror, just as SS-19 predicted, Ireson saw their tracker burst out from the wall of smoke behind them, at least 2 to 3 seconds before any other vehicles of any size came through. The vehicle continued to gain and close the space between them, dissipating white smoke trying in vain to cling onto it.

"Got im'!" Ireson reported shouting back at the walkie-talkie which Leoni was holding towards him from the curtained section of the sleeper cab. "Black Mustang! An e's combing fast!"

" _Gut._ _Jäger Two. Dis à Jäger Vun, observez_ _discrètement. Reste calme." Was S_ S-19's instruction

Ancaster took only 2-3 seconds to clear the smoke screen grinning to himself.

"Not good enough."

He poured on the power of the Mustang to bring him within range again of his quarry as they came into the last 200 meters of the tunnel, the apex of the curve behind them. The semi-circular patch of light at the end of the tunnel grew larger by the second as Ancaster remained focused on his target. It didn't take long before light flooded their world again as his target emerged still four car lengths ahead of him so that a few seconds later, he was also in the light of day.

"Well, Thaddeus." Ancaster chuckled dryly to himself as he pulled an IEM from within his sleeve, jacked into his own "liberated" Wrist Communicator T-37 and fitting it into his ear. "Time da pay…"

Ancaster cut himself off as he blinked and narrowed his eyes at his target.

For it was not his target.

The license plates were different. He scowled realizing he must have misjudged the position of the vehicle in the tunnel and he veered to the left, realizing it was the vehicle ahead.

Only it wasn't.

Ancaster sat up in his seat, the belt feeling tight against his big chest for once. The W900 in front of this one bore different plates AND belonged to Jupiter Electronics Corp. Growling, he floored the gas and sped right up next to the tractor unit, surveying both trucks closely. The one he had initially thought was the target but had the wrong license plate belonged to the Blue mist home steaks though it's lone driver did have a beard but no black leather jacket. The Jupiter Electronics Corp. W900 had 2 drivers, but one was a white haired man in his 50ties and the other was much younger in his 30ties but none of them were bearded.

Ancaster gritted his teeth as he yanked the IEM of the T-37 from his ear as he swung his head to his left to look at another red W900 pulling up next to him on this side. This was also from Jupiter Electronics and as he increased speed to pull ahead and look in his rear view mirror at the windshield, he saw it only had one driver as well with red centre parting hair and sunglasses.

The ex-CONTROL agent's fedora brim spun clockwise and counter-clockwise surveying the I-70 before him and the numerous semi-tractor trailers in front of him. He slammed the gear stick and stepped on the accelerator, surging forward to weave past almost each semi-trailer before him. He saw another one with a rear folding ramp but the license plate was still wrong. He moved up to the side anyway to check and realized it was again from Jupiter Electronics and the lone driver was a fat man with bouncing jowls that shook to the rhythm of his vehicle. Ancaster swung his head about so hard his neck started clicking as the fury built inside him.

As he kept passing the semis, he saw more Jupiter Electronics vehicles, the happy fisherman and camping supplies whatever they called themselves, the Blue steaks and barbeque thingy…Ancaster had stopped carrying what they were really called. All he cared about was that there was no sign of any orange box trailer with the words _Melnick's Home Entertainment & Electronics_ on it in garish purple and red.

"AAAAARRRRRRGGGGHHHH!" Ancaster hollered, throwing back his fedora topped head and pounding his fist on the steering wheel so hard he could feel it starting to whobble on the column.

A few hundred feet after the tunnel ended, both roads of the I-70 were joined by a smaller road which veered outwards from the two parallel roads of the I-70. The two roads still followed the I-70 but moved further and further from them before veering back in several hundred feet later to merge back into the two main roads again. At the point where these two smaller roads were the furthest from I-70, the interstate extended over a gulch while the 2 smaller roads at it's side followed the gradient of the land to move through the valley. It was here that County Road 1220 came winding in from the right and travelled along the floor of the gulch to cut across both of these smaller roads at this point, underneath the I-70 forming a T-junction on either side of the interstate.

As Ireson watched, the black Mustang rocketed straight on via I-70 over the gulch and onwards.

"Es tearin on right to Denver!" Ireson reported.

" _Gut. Proceed."_

Upon reaching the smaller road that branched out to the right, Ireson turned their W900 into it with 2 other Jupiter Electronics semis in front of him and a few others behind him. He had to apply the airbrakes due to the gradient.

The men inside the trailer jerked with the braking as they tried to continue their poker game.

"Sumasshedshiy anglichanin! Wat he doing?!" the broad shouldered, dark brown haired Baidukov seated with his back against the wall of the trailer exclaimed as he kept getting tossed sideways with the repeated braking.

"Pazzo L'inglese can't do anyding right!" the burly Specchi grumbled as he tossed one card down.

"Mould in their brains from all that rain in England." Drapikowski shrugged.

Reaching the T-junction in the gulch itself on the right of the I-70, Ireson slowed to let the semis in front of him execute their move before himself, pulling the large wheel counter-clockwise, to turn left onto County Road 1220 itself in the valley floor.

The near right angle turn titled the angle of the box trailer as the KAOS agent hauled it into alignment behind the tractor unit. The W900 travelled along 1220 for just a few hundred feet till it reached the other t-junction and Ireson yanked the steering column counter-clockwise again to turn left onto the smaller road which headed in the opposite direction.

"Zat őrült bolond eez going to TIP us ovar!" Lacza yelled as he was tossed backwards off his butt on the floor of the trailer.

"If we go over I'm gonna plant my boot so far UP his ass it'll become his permanent CHAIR!" Lorenc growled as he himself slammed sideways against the trailer wall.

Hayler braced his gloved hands on the floor and the wall as the trailer kept jerking and shaking before raising a gloved finger to ask.

"Uuuuh, mein Führer! Are…are vee TURNING around?"

SS-19 standing as steady and unmoving as an ebony colonnade despite the tumbling and jerking of the trailer, emitted a reply through her veil which left the fabric unmoved.

"Ja. Vee ver being followed."

All the men turned towards her, gaping and eyes wide.

"CONTROL found us?!" Drapikowski exclaimed

"Nein." SS-19's calm reply was accompanied by a minor shake of her head which rustled the silk veil against the cloth of her jumpsuit. "Sumsing more unpredictable. Eet ees of little concern. Just a minor counter-manoeuvre to augment E-D-Forty. Vee have eluded zhem for now. Owver mission eez a go."

The dull matte gray Kenworth W900 rolled smoothly out from a tunnel on it's course with a swirl of dissipating white smoke pursuing it. Only now, the blue and yellow advertisement of _Universal Furnishings & Fixings_ has now been replaced with the cartoon furniture encircled green and brown wordings of " _PINE & CEDAR's HOME FURNISHINGS_" on it. It's license plates of SAM-Five-Seven-Two had now been replaced by "GAA-653 Colorado".

Mikhail and Yuri had also discarded their toupees and beards and Mikhail now alone in the cab driving displayed his curly strawberry blond hair atop a narrow forehead and intense gray eyes over a narrow face and jaw. Yuri was now sitting comfortably behind the curtain of the sleeper section of their cab, his light brown hair trimmed in a crew cut above a sloping forehead.

As Yuri tossed aside his black leather jacket and adjusted the lighter _Pine & Cedar's Home Furnishing_'s uniform windbreaker which he and Mikhail now wore, he spoke into his walkie-talkie.

"Jäger Four to Jäger Leader. E-D-Forty compleat!"

The red W900 continued to cruise swiftly along the highway as forested hills and plains flashed by on either side with Ireson effortlessly bypassing various cars and other semis along the picturesque route.

Inside the trailer, SS-19 seemingly standing in exactly the same spot all this time, lifted her walkie-talkie to her veil as the Russian KAOS agent's report filtered through the IEM in her ear.

"Jäger Leader. Acknowledge. Any problems? Over."

"Jäger Four to Jäger Leader." Yuri replied as he peered in the side mirror. "Net. No wan we kan tell. You wan us slow down? Wait for you? Over."

"No." SS-19 answered. "Proceed as planned."

"Da, Jäger Leader."


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

Traffic flowed slowly and easily West Colfax Avenue and 14th Avenue with the same pace maintained at Delaware and Cherokee despite comprising vehicles. This genteel movement of vehicles seemed to personify the solid foundations of the Denver Mint at the centre of the flow. Old yet strong and everlasting as the sun moved slowly down towards it's setting angles, throwing it's golden reddish light across the bulk of it's construction.

The mint's carparks by this time were empty of all vehicles except Mint Police squad cars now and thick layers of snow over the empty lots. Flowing along with the traffic on the bordering roads were some of the squad cars as well patrolling the perimeter of the building.

Deep within the fortress like premises, the Chief spoke on a phone at one of the security consoles.

"Nothing yet?" the Chief inquired into the receiver, a frown gripping his tired face. "I see. Alright, thank you Chief. Please contact me the moment any of your squad cars spot them. Thank you."

With that the Chief handed the receiver back to the USMP officer who manned the console with a nod of thanks, after which he continued pacing from one console to another in the primary security command and control room. His eyes flicked from one closed-circuit tv screen to another which provided an image of the traffic on all roads as well as the interior of the Mint.

Nothing seemed amiss yet as the Chief breathed in, the unyielding armour bib he wore which his expanding chest pushed against, felt increasingly heavy now as though to emphasize the dread he was beginning to feel again deep in his stomach.

"Chief."

The Chief turned as Porter, titanium-steel alloy bib over his blue shirt and dark tie walked up to him with a Thompson submachine gun in his hands.

"Porter. Anything unusual from our agents inside the Mint?"

The African-American agent shrugged his shoulders against the hooks of his armour bib as he shook his head.

"Nothing Chief. I just made a round of every position inside the building. All our agents and accompanying Mint Police are in place and no one's spotted anyone REMOTELY resembling Kerstin and Vollmar. What about our agents outside?"

"All quiet." The Chief replied looking around him at the CCTV monitors but he tilted his head as he added. "Though I think we better have someone take over from Watkins."

To Porter's inquiring raised eyebrows, the Chief clarified.

"Cigarette Girl outfits make lousy winter wear too."

Porter tilted his head back in understanding.

"This waiting is putting me on edge." The Chief admitted shaking his head in frustration. "I wish we could tell HOW their advance team was going to infiltrate us."

"How did they do it at the museum Chief?" Porter enquired.

"By air." The Chief explained. "Vollmar and a group of his men came in via hang gliders. I planned for an air-infiltration but we were just waiting at the wrong place!"

"Well we got the place right this time Chief." Porter assured. "The truth drug worked perfectly on Hinkel."

"Even so." The Chief frowned clutching his fist as he spoke. "I'm getting a bad feeling. I just spoke to the Chief of the Patrol for the C-S-P. He says none of his patrol cars have spotted the two Kenworths we told them about anywhere between Copper Mountain and Denver. And it's been over half an hour since Max and Ninety-Nine reported SS-Nineteen leaving Copper Mountain."

"But there are lots of W-Nine-Hundreds on the roads Chief. It'd be hard for the state patrol da spot them especially with the traffic on the highway." Porter pointed out. "Any word from Max and Ninety-Nine since?"

"No." the Chief shook his balding head. "But they can't see much locked up inside the trailer and it's risky for them to try and look out."

The Chief pondered for a moment before he decided.

"I'll check in again with Max if nothing happens in another ten minutes or so. Meanwhile, Porter. Just in case, call CONTROL West Headquarters and have them ready some choppers. Enough for all of us."

"Right Chief." Porter nodded pulling his ear piece for his wrist communicator from his pocket.

The red W900's massive engine hummed loud and smooth as the tractor unit with it's Jupiter Electronics Corp. logo negotiated a long gentle leftwards curve in the highway. Some low but steep forested hills dominated the landscape to the right of the highway while thicker forests on more level terrain spread out on the left side, equally white and pristine from the generous snow fall.

Ireson pulled smoothly past a black semi towards the end of the curve and honked the horn to alert a station wagon in front of him. As the smaller vehicle moved to the left for it's monstrous contemporary, Ireson's gray eyes narrowed behind his aviator glasses.

"Oi Leoni!" he called over his shoulder. "I see em!"

Leoni parted the curtain slightly from the sleeper cab section to get a look out the windshield of the cab before lifting the walkie-talkie.

"Jäger Two to Jäger le commandant. Over."

" _Report_." SS-19's voice floated through the walkie-talkie like a winter's whisper.

"We hava, caught up wee Wilde Jagd Two. Over."

"Compris." SS-19 inside the trailer acknowledged through her veil into her walkie-talkie. "À quelle distance sommes-nous de la prochaine ville?"

"Eeeeh." Leoni paused as he stuck his head forward past the curtain to get a better look through the windshield. "Je peux le voir maintenant! Ten minutes maybe at present speed!"

"Gut." SS-19 replied. "Signalez l'autre camion. Ensuite, prenez les devants."

"Compris Jäger le commandant!"

As Mikhail drove, Yuri parted the curtain of the sleeper cab section to stick his light brown crew cut topped head through.

"Mikhail! Wilde Jagd One pozadi nas! Pust' oni vedut!"

"Da!" Mikhail nodded, easing back on the accelerator and veering to the right.

A second later, the red W900 cruised up and flashed past them effortlessly before maintaining a 2 car lead as they settled into the final 2 to 3 miles to the city ahead.

"You know what Ninety-Nine?" Max griped as he paced the floor of the trailer next to the pale gray Land Rover and looked about the semi-darkness of their surroundings. "Now I know why everyone's always so crazy bout a window seat when they travel."

99 smiled from the other side of the Land Rover where she was also pacing slightly but thankful for the loosening of her calf and knees as she moved about. Her gloved hands on her hips, 99 turned as she reached the rear bumper of the black Land Rover at the front end of the box trailer and looked up.

"Max. Does…does it feel like we're slowing down?" she enquired stopping her pacing.

Max leaning with a hand on the gray Land Rover's hood looked up as well as he considered it before shaking his head with a pout of his think lisp of a lower lip.

"Not by much."

"Hmm. We seem to be going through some turns." 99 noted feeling the shift in the centrifugal force inside the box trailer.

"Lots of that on the highway." Max shrugged as he found himself leaning in towards the Land Rover as they seemed to make another turn.

99 walked back to the gray Land Rover and said as she reached the right side fender.

"Max. I wonder…oh my god!"

99 cried out as the entire box trailer seem to swing wildly towards the right, throwing her sideways against the Land Rover's fender, sending her upper body splaying over the hood while Max found himself reeling backwards till he slammed against the left side wall of the box trailer.

As they remained pinned in their respective positions for a moment, the 2 W900s cruised smoothly down a street inside the city. But it was not long before they came to a junction and Ireson turned the wheel counter-clockwise to make a left turn onto it. Just as his box trailer straightened behind him, Mikhail followed suit negotiating the left turn just a swiftly with his box trailer turning left to follow him.

99 cried out again as their box trailer world shifted in a different direction sending her flying off the hood of the Land Rover and reeling back to slam into the wall of the trailer while Max stumbled forward, arms flailing to collide chest first into the gray Land Rover's door, his eyes popping as he made contact.

99 kept herself braced against the wall of the trailer on her side till the turn seemed to be completed and the W900 seemed to put on a surge of speed as it must now encountered an uninterrupted path.

"Well Ninety-Nine? You were worried bout them not turning back to the I-Seventy?" Max grimaced as he pushed himself off the Land Rover.

"Max, it doesn't' feel like turns on a highway." 99 observed as she quickly moved back to the Land Rover and grabbed the door to brace herself in case of another turn. "I…I could have sworn I heard something as we slowed down back there. It's…it's like…I thought I heard bicycle bells. And kids laughing. Max.—" 99's eyes widened so her pupils reflected blue circles of light in the dim interior. "—Do…do you think we're in a city?"

"Probably Idaho Springs. We'd have to pass it on the way to Denver." Max decided. "That means we should be there in maybe thirty, forty minutes."

99 sighed nodding.

The Chief nodded on the phone of one of the security consoles in the Denver Mint's security command centre.

"Alright Chief. Thank you! Please continue to have your patrol cars maintain a look out for the two vehicles. Right."

With that, he handed it back to the US Mint Police officer manning the console and walked rapidly back to Porter who stood watching a number of CCTV monitors manned diligently by several USMPD officers.

"Any sign of the KAOS semis from the state police?" Porter enquired as the Chief walked over, wringing his hands.

"No! Nothing!" the Chief exclaimed, his brow now knotted together and the veins began standing out on his forehead. "I don't LIKE this Porter! Something is wrong! It's been nearly an hour since KAOS left their hide out in the Copper Mountains. The C-S-P should have had some sign of them by now."

With that, the Chief yanked his T-37's IEM from his sleeve with it's trailing wire plugged into the communications device and pushed the earpiece into his ear canal.

The two W900s continued surging down the highway, the city already vanishing into the distance behind it. Ireson shifted to another gear as the road ahead became clear and he pressed his boot down onto the gas pedal further. Mikhail saw this and matched the speed keeping up with him as both vehicles surged down the road as a forested trail flashed by on their left. But very soon, this trail expanded and as they cruised on, it grew rapidly into snow covered forests that flanked them on both sides, hurtling by in a relentless blur of white trees with endless expanses of it ahead far as their eyes could see.

99 was sitting sideways inside the Land Rover's passenger seat with her long legs stretched out and booted feet on the reverberating trailer floor. She was beginning to wonder about the intense light that was now seeping in along the 4 edges of the trailer's right side wall that seemed to increase in intensity and reach out over the floor and ceiling of the trailer.

"Ninety-Nine! It's the Chief!" Max called over from where he stood, leaning his back against the left quarter panel of the gray Land Rover, interrupting 99's thoughts and bringing her hurrying round the back of the vehicle to him.

Max pushed a button on the T-37 to receive the transmission after he and 99 had the IEMs secured in their ears.

"Chief?" Max answered with 99 leaning her head in towards his on his left. "Max and Ninety-Nine here."

"Max!" the Chief spoke, finger pressed to his own IEM trailing from his T-37 with Porter next to him. "What is your situation?"

"No change. But KAOS is making good time Chief." Max reported arching his eyebrows. "We just passed through Idaho Springs I think."

The Chief squinted and Porter joined in when his superior echoed.

"Idaho Springs?"

"Is anything wrong Chief?" 99 asked leaning forward to speak into the T-37.

Despite the thick sleeves of his parka, followed by his sports jacket and shirt and the thick strap of the T-37 beneath, Max grimaced with annoyance at how her breath, for some reason seemed to fight past all those layers to caress his wrist with tendrils of warmth that inexplicably, sent goose pimples jumping up his entire forearm and his heart pounding in his chest.

"Well." The Chief shook his head in perplexity. "I've been in constant contact with the Colorado State Patrol and they have not spotted the KAOS semis at ALL!"

"Well the traffic is pretty heavy." Max admitted. "They might have missed it."

"I…I guess it's possible." The Chief admitted, but the tightness in his brow refused to relent. "Max. Did…KAOS make any stops at all since you left Copper Mountain?"

"Eeeh, I don't think so Chief." Max reported glancing over at 99 for confirmation and she also shook her head. "What're you thinking?"

"Well," the Chief shook his head. "I'm just considering the possibility that KAOS may have switched their number plates en-route somehow. Or even changed the logos on the trailers."

"We didn't stop at all Chief." Max confirmed. "But I suppose they could have done it be-FORE we left. We didn't hear them talking about it but that doesn't mean anything. Anyway Chief, it doesn't matter cause we KNOW where they're going right?"

"I suppose." The Chief nodded without any relief to his anxiety. "But it's not just the lack of sightings by the State Police. You told me that Ancaster fully expected to call us when he confirmed where KAOS was going to extract further payment from us."

"But we already know where KAOS is going Chief." Max squinted.

"Yes but Ancaster doesn't KNOW that." The Chief responded. "He MUST be following KAOS and by now, he would have figured out that KAOS is coming to Denver and the target is the Mint. But he hasn't contacted us at all. Which leads me to believe something is wrong!"

"Well Chief." Max supposed. "It's possible S-S-Nineteen somehow gave Ancaster the slip. I mean, we didn't actually head towards Denver right away. She must have somehow thrown him off so that's why he hasn't called."

The Chief sighed heavily pinching the bridge of his nose for one of the rare times in this life, not because of Max.

"That's another possibility I guess."

"Chief." 99's modulated soothing tones flooded the Chief's ear canal through his IEM. "Are you worried that S-S-Nineteen could be employing some form of diversion again?"

"I wish I could discount that possibility!" The Chief said, pacing nervously as he spoke with Porter looking on with arms crossed over his armour bib.

"But that's impossible Chief!" Max declared. "After all, the information came from Hinkel under the control of the truth drug, not some random pieces of left over plans planted to mislead us."

"I…I guess that's true."

"And we verified that Hinkel answered the other base questions we gave him truthfully." 99 put in.

"But there is NO way to confirm if the truth serum is truly working." The Chief declared rubbing his forehead and feeling his blood pounding through the veins there. "What if Hinkel WAS a distraction and he set us UP!"

"Chief, that's kinef far-fetched don't you think?" Max squinted.

"Chief, even if the drug didn't work," 99 surmised, breathing onto Max's wrist so that his forearm felt as though it was being struck by lightning. "it would mean Hinkel sacrificed himself willingly, allowing himself to be caught. But that's highly unlikely. Hinkel's psychological profile clearly indicates he's a narcissist. He'd never allow himself to be sacrificed as he would believe himself TOO integral to any greater scheme! Being a scapegoat would be beneath him."

"You're right as well Ninety-Nine." The Chief acknowledged. "But I cannot shake this feeling that something is wrong!"

"What would you like us to do Chief?" 99 asked.

The Chief closed his eyes, focusing for several seconds watched closely by Porter. Finally his eyes snapped open as he spoke decisively.

"Max! I know it's a risk. But I need you to try to get a look at where you're headed!"

"Right Chief." Max acknowledged before removing the IEM from his ear and unstrapping his T-37.

"Here, hold on to this Ninety-Nine."

Then rubbing his left forearm, he walked over the shaky floor of the trailer to the ladder at the front end of the trailer. 99 watched anxiously as Max climbed the ladder towards the hatch in the ceiling. She clutched the T-37 in her black leather gloved hand with it's remaining IEM dangling from it and for some reason, she thought she could feel the residual warmth of Max's wrist in the communications device somehow permeating her glove to hold her fingers, making her heart skip several beats and her body tremble beneath her parka, jacket and t-shirt.

The fixed ladder bolted into the front end of the trailer shook so hard the vibration went up his arms to his shoulders and made his teeth chatter. His grip knuckle white on each rung as he ascended, Max managed to reach the hatch. Bracing his feet on the rungs carefully and maintaining a good grip with is right hand, 86 took hold of the handle on the hatch and slowly pushed it up a few inches.

Immediately, air colder than ice gushed through the gap in a horizontal line, hitting his forehead and eyes relentlessly along with a suffused glare of sun light making it nearly impossible to keep his eyes open to see anything. He had to close the hatch and blink several times to thaw out his eyes before trying again.

This time, he risked revealing their presence by pushing the hatch up further, creating a 7 inch gap for himself to allow the rest of his face to share the icy onslaught of the incoming gale. The speed at which the semi was hurtling down the road had not lessened and Max forced his eyes opened a few seconds to behold snow covered forests on either side of the road they were on and stretching forward far as his smarting eyes could see. There were fleeting blurs of man-made shapes at the road side that hurtled by which Max realized were road signs.

At the same time he was immediately aware of the softening glare of the sun off to his right. Turning his head in that direction, he beheld majestic snow covered mountains rising from the forest landscape. The glorious setting sun was just sinking below the tops of the mountains slightly forward from his right, turning the sky a splendorous deep golden red while the white covering the mountains were transformed into red snow. Looking ahead, he saw another semi in-front of him but he could not make out the license plates as his eyes could not open wide enough against the endless onslaught of the wind.

This forced him to turn his head to the left to see more wintery forests. Max just managed to peer past the edge of the hatch to look behind him where he saw several semis in the distance along with various smaller vehicles cruising along the highway, the latter looking tiny next to the monster he was on as they zipped by.

SS-19 listened as Leoni's report filtered through into her ear through her hidden IEM. After a few seconds, she nodded decisively and replied.

"Compris Jäger Two. Continue at present speed und alert me vunce vee reach zer turn off."

" _Oui Jäger le commandant_."

SS-19 walked a few steps away from the rear bumper of the matt brown Land Rover. The other KAOS agents in the trailer were still lounging on their sleeping bags along the walls, some playing cards, others fitfully napping away.

"Men." SS-19 spoke.

Instantly, every one of the men snapped to attention or out of their slumber despite the soft tone of her voice. Their heavy chemical overshoe boots thumped and screeched loudly on the trailer floor as they scrambled and ran towards her. SS-19 stood perfectly still, gloved hands behind her back as the dozen over men scrambled now to stop in a semi-circle before her, their boots screeching again loudly as they grabbed onto each other to steady themselves from their sudden movement. The diminutive Drapikowski actually elbowed past everyone else, shoving the much taller than him, Specchi and Hayler aside. Specchi growled at the smaller man while the flaxen haired Hayler griped as he stumbled sideways, trying to catch his balance.

"Watch it you minuscolo Americano!" the burly Italian KAOS agent yelled.

"Vhy must you ALVAYS be een front?!" Hayler exclaimed rolling his blue eyes and tossing up his gloved hands.

"I'm SHORT okay!" Drapikowski snarled, his horseshoe moustache twisting like a black snake. "I don't wanna MISS anything!"

"Like I say! MINUSCOLO!" Specchi growled again.

"Men." SS-19 repeated which silenced every one and again captured their attention. "Vee are on schedule und about half und owver to zer final target. Your valuable preparations have brought us to zhis moment. Vell done."

"Thanks boss!..Grazie capo!...No sweat SS-Nineteen!..Köszönöm, parancsnok!..Danke Führer!..Spasibo, komandir!..." chorused all the men as they bowed and nodded.

"However, to ensure zer success of owver final mission," SS-19 continued once their chorus of gratitude stopped. "eet ees vith some regret, zhat I had to perpetuate a small degree of subterfuge. Owver final target, ees NOT—zer Denver Mint."

SS-19 paused as the men all squinted, blinked repeatedly or looked at each other for several seconds before chorusing.

"Say again?!...Mit?!...Cosa intendi?!...Entschuldigung, mein Anführer?...Huh?!...But we aint got no scuba tanks!... Prikhodite opyat', moy komandir?!..."

SS-19 put up a gloved hand which silenced their questions immediately for her to continue.

"I know zhis ees a shock. Vut…" SS-19 stopped in mid-sentence as her veiled face seemed to tilt slightly.

All the KAOS agents started leaning forward as they waited for her to continue. She did not and after several more seconds, Drapikowski whispered with a hand cupped next to his horseshoe moustache.

"Pssst! Boss! Is there someone hiding in here?"

"Nein." SS-19 shook her head before turning her veiled back to them, looking up slightly causing the silk to fall softly on her face as she asked without disturbing the material at all. "Vhat did you say Barton?"

All the men turned towards a KAOS agent standing in the back of the group, in a green woollen turtle neck sweater and red curly hair. He raised his gloved hand again and repeated.

"I said I don't remember us packing any scuba gear. Is it in the other truck?"

Everyone else squinted at him or raised their gloved hands in a total loss which caused Barton to get even more puzzled.

A sound like a winter's breeze issued from SS-19's veil and her breasts fell slightly inside her black jumpsuit as she spoke.

"Nein. Sub-ter-fuge. A deception. A lie."

"Ooooh!" Barton exclaimed, eyes popping as he pointed his raised gloved finger back at himself. "Sorry Boss! All the noise in here! I heard submarine or submerge!"

"THAT!" Drapikowski snarled at Specchi and Hayler in turn. "Is why I wanna be in-FRONT!"

As the rest of the agents murmured with annoyance at a sheepish Barton and turned back to face SS-19, Hayler squinted his blue eyes as he waved a gloved finger.

"Ooooh! So ZHAT'S vhy you've been speaking Französisch vith zer Pepé Le Pew since vee left!"

"And we've been heading somewhere else since that turn we took to lose the tail we had?" the burly Lorenc queried.

"Richtig, both of you." SS-19 nodded and continued to explain as she remained as unmoving as a black statue. "After zer loss of owver previous unit following zer museum mission een Vashington, zer Oberführer und I knew zhat not everyvun of zer men vould take zheir poison pills. Meaning, eet vas inevitable zhat CONTROL vould discover owver orparation here een Colorado. As such, I told you all a false target to mislead CONTROL who are now most likely vaiting for us far avay een Denver. Only Vollmar und Kerstin knew vhere zer actual target vas for security purposes. Zer men vith zhem een zer advance team found out only before zhey set off as did zer drivers und co-drivers of zer trucks."

As the KAOS agents pondered this latest revelation and murmured among themselves, Drapikowski placed a gloved hand on his narrow chest, declaring.

"Boss, this is your barbeque and it smells good! But gadda say, little hurt! I thought you trusted us." He quickly put up his gloved palm as he continued with a bowed head. "But that's my problem! Over it now! What's the real plan?"

"Podozhdite!" Baidukov raised a gloved hand and as everyone turned towards him, asked. "How CONTROL, NO about fake target?"

"Een answer to zhat," SS-19 replied. "zer deception vas actually meant to exclude, zer VUN person among you, zhat I did NOT trust."

All the KAOS agents blinked and murmured some more for a few moments before the barrel chested and brown bearded Yakovlevich narrowed his heavy brows and queried.

"You mean da wan with da severnyy olen' name?"

"Richtig."

"What name?" Barton asked from the back.

"Reindeer's name." Baidukov interpreted.

All the KAOS agents gave shouts of realizations and tossed their arms up or nodded to each other as Lorenc spoke up.

"So that distributor run was bogus?"

SS-19 nodded and Hayler added on, arms crossed but flipping one gloved hand back and forth as he spoke.

"Zo, you KNEW CONTROL had a file on Hinkel, zent eem off to a KAOS front vhich vas likely under surveillance vy CONTROL, vhere zhere vas a high likelihood he vould be recognized und captured, upon vhich he vould spill zer beans, telling CONTROL ov zer fake target."

"Richtig." SS-19 repeated and with a rare expressive tilt of her draped turban shrouded head and veiled face, asked. "You are enraged at my betrayal of our comrade?"

At this, Hayler's crystal blue eyes widened as he shook his flaxen head replying.

"Nein. I just vished I knew so I could LAUGH behind Hinkel's back as ee left!"

"Wasn't he your superior officer back in the S-S?" Drapikowski squinted up at the German on his left.

"Ja." Hayler affirmed. "Hence, zer gut-laugh-behind-ees-back-as-ee-left bit.—" As Drapikowski gave a lopsided smirk and Specchi chortled dryly, the German KAOS agent noticed SS-19's head remained tilted, though in curiosity or anger he could not tell. Putting up a placating gloved palm as he addressed her. "—all due respects to you mein Führer und zer Oberführer, vut HINKEL—vas a BULLY und a COW-verd who rose through zer ranks of zer Waffen SS und Reichssicherheitshauptamt vy lying, cheating, stealing credit from uzzers und shooting his enemies UND friends een zer BACK!—" looking about at Drapikowski, Specchi and the other KAOS agents around him, Hayler jabbed a gloved thumb at his own broad chest under his gray turtle neck sweater as he declared proudly. "—Vhen "I" keel somevun—you can be sure I do it to zheir FACE!"

"Vhat a credit to zer Wehrmacht you musz have been." SS-19 declared without a single movement of her veil.

Hayler could not tell if she was being sarcastic or humorous but decided that if she chose to kill him, she would likely do it after the mission, so he decided to be gracious about it by clicking-or bumping the heels of his overshoe boots together with a dull bump and bowing curtly as he said.

"Danke mein Führer! I tried my best, for zer most part."

"Eeeh, boss!" Drapikowski spoke up and gestured with gloved palms up. "Back to the robbing, killing and stealing. Not to be a downer…but we prepped for the Denver Mint! We rehearsed and PRACTICED for a MINT. How…how're we gonna pull off…whatever we're gonna pull now?"

"Eversing you have prepared und rehearsed, vill serve you at owver actual target. All preparations vere made vith zer true objective in mind. Now—" SS-19 reached behind her back and produced a triangle of paper which she began to unfold. "—vith zhis schematic of zer actual target und zer briefing I vill give you now, you shall all be fully prepared for vhat ees to come."

With that, SS-19 lowered into a crouch as smoothly as a cat and began spreading out the schematic on the floor of the trailer while her men quickly moved forward to gather around. As they waited for her to adjust the blueprint, another one of the KAOS agents, a broad slab of a man in his late forties standing at 5ft 10 with short reddish blond gelled hair parted at the side, a broad face and thin nose, found himself next to Hayler to whom he whispered.

"Hayler? Meisinger—Oberfeldwebel, Third Panzerdivision."

Hayler took the proffered gloved handshake from the man's crossed arms, nodding as he replied.

"Leutnant, Fallschirmjäger Luftlande-Sturm-Regiment Vunund Lehr-Bataillon."

Meisinger raised his thick brows as he noted.

"Fort Eben-Emael? Egypt? Libya? Operation Eiche?"

"Zhere, zhere, zhere und zhere." Hayler replied titling his head from side to side with each "there" while he watched SS-19 spread the schematic out.

"I've zeen you on zer recruitment posters for zer Wehrmacht." Meisinger noted as he tilted side to side to look past the heads of the KAOS agents in front of him to get a look at the new blueprints.

"NOT my finest owver." Hayler sighed rolling up his blue eyes and tilting his flaxen head back slightly. "I hope NONE of zhose survived zer var!"

Meisinger chuckled, his boulder like shoulders bouncing as he did before he continued.

"Vut HOW did you managed to get into zer Reichssicherheitshauptamt?! I applied for YEARS und never heard back from zhem!"

"Count your lucky Panzers zhey didn't!" Hayler scoffed with an eye roll. "It's NO posting for true soldiers. Especially Ausland S-D vhere I vas tossed eento—kicking down doors to homes een zer middle of zer night, rounding up families, terrorizing helpless civilians, vomen und children—und I didn't even do ZHAT vhich vould have been considered my DUTY! Zhat dummkopf HINKEL had me running around as his personal ERRAND boy—making ees coffee, pouring ees eisbocks und doppelbocks—vich I vas NEVER allowed to try! Polishing ees jackBOOTS, vashing und ironing ees uniforms vich alvays STANK of eisbock und doppelbocks, cleaning ees office, emptying ees vaste paper baskets uuugghhh!—" Hayler hissed rolling his crystal blue eyes to the ceiling again as he declared softly. "—I nevar MISSED parachuting fifty-thousand feet to uncertain torture und death behind enemy lines so much since Hitler stopped large scale airborne oparations afzer Crete!"


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

99 breathed a sigh of relief as Max climbed back down from the ladder. As he reached the trailer floor and turned back to her, taking hold of the other IEM, he asked.

"Ninety-Nine, is it getting frosty in here?"

"Not really Max." 99 shook her head causing her shoulder length dark brown hair to sweep about the shoulders of her parka with a silky rustle.

"Oh. Then it must be the icicles on my eyebrows." Max grimaced as he put the IEM into his ear before taking the T-37 from 99. "Chief, Max here."

The Chief looked up which signalled Porter to lean in with interest as well.

"Yes Max! What did you see?"

"Just lots of forests, mountains and snow." Max shrugged. "Which is pretty much Colorado for ya."

"What about the highway? Any signs to say how far you are from Denver?" the Chief asked.

"We're not on the highway anymore Chief." Max shook his head. "Just a regular road. We're probably getting close."

This caused 99 and the Chief to frown, hundreds of miles apart as they were.

"You're…you're on a road?" the Chief echoed which caused Porter's eyebrows to also arch now.

"Max, that doesn't make any sense. To get to Denver, the I-Seventy would take you right into the city before connecting to U.S Route 6."

As Porter looked more and more puzzled alongside the Chief as he listened on, Max shrugged inside the ever increasingly shaking box trailer as he replied.

"Maybe S-S-Nineteen likes a more scenic route. I'm not too crazy bout all this mountain and snow but if it's the sunset she's after, she's gaddit—BIG and glaring to our right.—"

99's eyes widened momentarily causing the orbs of her iris to turn the dim light in the trailer slightly blue as it was reflected while her delicate sharp chin dropped before she slumped back against the Land Rover, head slumping to the side in dismay.

"—I wonder if she's got a porthole or something in her trailer just da look at it." Max continued to wonder.

And the Chief mirrored 99's shock with popping eyes and a slack jaw as he exclaimed.

"The sunset is off to your RIGHT?!" Which immediately caused Porter to also squeeze his eyes shut and smacked a palm to his forehead as he threw in on the party of dismay along with the Chief.

"Oh yeah." Max nodded fervently. "HUGE and did I say glaring? I don't see what the fuss is really I mean, it's gadda go down sometime and…"

"MAX!" the Chief hollered into his T-37, finger pressed so hard into his IEM he thought he might need surgery to remove it from his ear canal after this. "Denver is to the East or North-EAST of Copper Mountain! If you were just out-SIDE Denver now which you SHOULD be, the sun set should be just about be-HIND you! If the sun is somewhere off to your RIGHT, it means you're headed SOUTH!"

In the dim trailer Max looked up at the gloom where the ceiling was as he listened to the Chief and his thin lips mouthed and repeated to himself what the Chief said and finally he spoke out loud into the T-37.

"You know something Chief?"

" _What Max?!"_

"If the sun is to my right and Denver is in the East, I'm starting da think maybe I'm headed South instead of…"

"OH for heaven's SAKES MAX!" the Chief hollered, shaking so hard Porter was afraid his superior might be having a seizure. "Do you see any signs?! ANYTHING to indicate where you are NOW?!"

"Eeeeh…" Max wondered, gazing at the ceiling of the trailer as 99 returned to stand by his side, her head leaning in towards his shoulder as her gloved finger pressed the IEM at her ear. "…I think I saw a road sign."

"Good! Good! What did the sign say?!"

"We were going too fast Chief, I only saw part of it. Eeeeh…it said…I think…uuuh…bottom!"

"Bottom?" the Chief asked realizing he was certainly at the bottom of somewhere not good now as Porter squinted trying to make sense of what was relayed.

"That's right!" Max nodded. "HALF-Bottom road to be exact!" Which of course caused 99 to squint in puzzlement at the revelation.

"Half-bottom road?" the Chief shrugged looking at Porter in absolutely loss and the agent could only give an equally clueless shrug of his shoulders under the hooks of his armour bib. "Max are you SURE that's what the sign said? I don't think…"

The Chief froze in mid-sentence and Porter began reaching for his own T-37 to call an ambulance as every bit of colour drained from his superior's face causing him to believe the aneurysm that had been pending since 86 joined CONTROL was finally here.

The Chief seemed just able to control the trembling in his voice as he finally spoke, his eyes still wide.

"Max. Do you mean Half-MOON road?"

"Yes, but I didn't wanna say that out loud as it sounded offensive." Max smiled lopsidedly. "Plus there being a girl here with me.—"

99's eyes and face lit up with a near transcendent glow of joy, blue light resonating off her irises and her jaw lowering in sheer delight at Max's acknowledgement and she could just barely gasp.

"Why THANK you Ma…"

"—Oh wait, what was I thinking?" Max continued taking a millisecond look at her. "—Sorry Chief, I forgot it's not an actual girl, just Ninety-Nine, so I can say it. Half- _moon_ Road."

As the joy on 99's face disappeared as quickly as a gopher down into it's burrow at the sight of a jackal and turned into a scowling, sideways eye roll, the Chief took a deep breath with his eyes closed to gather his strength.

"Chief. There's nothing out on Halfmoon Road." Porter declared with an endlessly quizzical expression on his dark face. "Just camp grounds for the San Isabel National Forest and Mount Colossal Wilderness. Picnic areas, some parking lots—nothing that would be a target for KAOS."

The Chief kept his eyes closed for a few moments longer and Porter started turning to the nearest USMP officer to call for a paramedic but luckily at the last moment was snapped back to attention by the voice of his superior.

"Porter!"

"Yes Chief!"

Turning back to face the Chief, Porter was glad to see his superior's eyes opened now and shining with their characteristic deep intelligence as he spoke.

"Listen." The Chief said, emphasizing with a raised hand and leaning towards Porter to speak in a softer tone. "I think I know where KAOS is headed. But I can't tell you or the rest of our agents here because it's a Code Z!"

"Right Chief!" Porter nodded. "What do you need us to do?"

With a raised finger, the Chief instructed.

"I need you to stay here and take charge of our agents. JUST in case I'm wrong and KAOS shows up here. At the same time, get me a helicopter now, with enough fuel to fly out to the Mount Colossal Wilderness and back. Also, tell CONTROL Central to await for a priority call from me. Quickly, go."

"Right Chief!" Porter declared and walked off a few feet away to speak into his T-37 while the Chief quickly walked over to a corner of the mint's command centre for more privacy.

"Max, Ninety-Nine."

"We're here Chief." Max answered.

"Alright. Listen very carefully." The Chief spoke with the T-37 close to his lips. "I believe I know where KAOS is going. I SHOULD have realized this earlier but I just didn't think it was POSSIBLE! All this while, we've been trying to out-think and out-guess SS-Nineteen but she's outsmarted us—AGAIN!"

"She has?" Max frowned at 99 who returned the same expression.

"YES!" the Chief hissed into his T-37 in frustration. "All this time, first having her hideout in Clear Creek, then moving it to Copper Mountain…we thought she was just trying to distract us from the Denver Mint by moving AWAY from Denver but in actual FACT—she was ALSO moving CLOSER to her actual target, inside the Mount Colossal Wilderness in Lake County! The city you passed through wasn't Idaho Springs but Leadville!"

"Chief, what IS her actual target?" 99 inquired.

Max sighed turning to 99.

"Ninety-Nine, if you don't mind. I'D like to handle this."

"Sorry Max!" 99 nodded fervently leaning back from Max's T-37 so he could lean towards it and ask.

"Chief, what IS her actual target?"

The Chief managed to keep his aneurysm at bay as he answered.

"It's Area-Fifty-Three-D!"

As 99 frowned in puzzlement, Max rolled his eyes up and stared at the ceiling of the box trailer, becoming increasingly lit up from the right side as the sun continued to set in that direction. He tossed his free hand up and declared, gesturing emphatically as he did.

"Of COURSE! Area Fifty-Three-D! Why didn't we think of that be-FORE?! It HAS to be Area Fifty-Three-D! I mean, what ELSE could it be, but Area Fifty-Three-D!?—" Max's eyes popped as he continued. "Why, if KAOS succeeds in attacking Area Fifty-Three-D, the whole COUNTRY is in a lot of trouble! It was right in front of us all along! AREA-Fifty-Three-D! Just one question Chief."

"Yes Max?" the Chief sighed with his eyes closed and massaging the bridge of his nose throughout Max's exclamation.

"What IS Area Fifty-Three-D?"

As 99 sighed rolling her eyes sideways at Max, the Chief took an even deeper breath as he explained.

"Area Fifty-Three-D, is a highly classified United States Air Force installation. It's an underground hangar built in-SIDE Mount Colossal! I never thought of it before because it was classified as a cross-agency Code Z! Other than the personnel assigned to the hangar, only the President, Secretary of Defence, heads of the intelligence agencies and Joint Chiefs know of it's existence. I'm actually violating orders just by telling the two of you about it right now!"

"What's Area Fifty-Three-D's purpose Chief?" 99 inquired. "Research and development? Testing facility?"

"No." the Chief replied. "It's an extension of our anti-ballistic missile system. A last line of defence should a ballistic strike aimed for the west coast get past our A-B-M bases there. The hangar houses eight fighter jets, fully armed and fuelled to be deployed at a moment's notice to intercept any incoming missile strikes."

"Wait a minute Chief!" Max squinted tilting his big-eared head. "A hangar, DEEP inside a mountain, SURROUNDED by more mountains?! Where do they keep their runway?!"

"They don't need one." The Chief explained trying to keep his tone hushed. "These eight fighter jets are AV-Seven-Z Harriers! They're a top secret line of fighter jets the British developed for us. The first in a line of vertical/short takeoff and landing fighter aircrafts. Mass deployment are expected in two years but the British provided us with these advanced prototypes being used at Area Fifty-Three-D."

"But Chief." 99 inquired. "They can't possibly be after the fighter jets. Even if they had enough pilots to fly them out, then what are these trucks for? And they could simply steal the blueprints to the fighter jets instead."

"You're right Ninety-Nine." The Chief declared. "I'm afraid there're two items found in Area Fifty-Three-D that are much more valuable. One of them, is the X-Ten. A first generation laser-powered missile detector. There're only fifteen in existence right now and eight of them are at Area Fifty-Three-D, installed inside the Harriers. The second, and this is why I believe they need the trucks—is S-R-P-Fifty!"

"A new sunscreen?" Max inquired.

"A revolutionary, highly versatile, fuel." The Chief powered on through Max's well-thought out theory. "It's a breakthrough in solid state propellant research which the military hopes to utilize in large scale for our ballistic missiles in the future. Our top scientist Professor Einstock perfected S-R-P-Fifty six years ago. It's solid state and high density makes it highly stable, compact and easy to store and transport. One canister less than five feet in length and 12 inches in diameter is enough to DOUBLE the range of any ballistic missile. Add a thinning agent to it and it replaces JP-Four as a jet fuel. Half a canister would TRIPLE the combat radius of any jet fighter and that's NOT including what they can carry in drop tanks! In fact, that's what the Harrier jets at the hangar are fuelled with."

"Sounds like a real bargain for a can." Max nodded with a pout. "But Chief, I don't get it. Why bother to steal the fuel itself? It's a logistical nightmare! Why not just get the formula?"

"They can still reverse engineer the formula once they have the fuel." The Chief explained but shook a finger as he continued. "But I believe I know the reasons WHY they're going after the fuel itself right now. First, S-R-P-Fifty is incredibly difficult to synthesize. In fact, there are less than three thousand canisters in existence right now and it took the Air Force six years since Professor Einstock perfected the formula to produce that much! Most of it is stored at Hill Air Force Base in Utah which obviously is too large for KAOS to attack. Second and this is also highly classified—as effective as it is, S-R-P-Fifty will soon be rendered obsolete at least in terms of ease of production. The British are currently working on a new rocket fuel with capabilities that equals or exceeds S-R-P-Fifty. They estimate it to be ready inside two years at which time they'll share it with their allies. This leads me to believe that KAOS has been paid to steal the fuel and for whatever reason, their employer expects the actual propellant without delay! Also, KAOS is likely trying to double their profit by selling the S-R-P-Fifty to their client be-FORE news of the British research is revealed! That way, when their client demands the British fuel as well which they most certainly will, they can simply charge them AGAIN to get it."

"There's customer service for ya!" Max scoffed.

"Chief! What's our next move?" 99 asked. "Do you want Max and I to try and stop the trucks now?"

"Your chances of success are slim and you'll both likely be killed, swiftly and painfully!" The Chief declared.

"Chief, I have an idea." Max suggested. "Let's try anything EXCEPT that!"

"Can you get our agents to Area Fifty-Three-D on time Chief?" was 99's next query.

"I doubt it. And I CANNOT let anyone else know about this because of the code Z! But don't worry. I have a plan." The Chief assured. "Perhaps we DID outsmart KAOS after all. KAOS has NO idea that you're in their truck, right under their very noses and that we now KNOW of their plans! By my estimation, you should be about half an hour from Mount Colossal. I'll warn Area Fifty-Three-D's commanding officer, Colonel Patrick T Archer—a good friend of mine. After that, I'll inform the Joint Chiefs and SecDef and fly out to Area Fifty-Three-D by helicopter to help Colonel Archer capture KAOS upon their arrival. With the hangar's guards and defences and reinforcements sent by the Joint Chiefs ready for them, KAOS doesn't stand a chance!"

"I like that last part." Max nodded. "What do you want us to do till then Chief?"

"Stay hidden." The Chief answered. "I'll keep you informed on my progress."

"Right Chief." Max said. "Just one thing Chief. If it becomes ABSOLUTELY necessary! If BLOWING up these two semis with an airstrike is the ONLY way to stop KAOS from getting the fuel and jeopardizing the security of our nation and endangering the forces of good and NICENESS! I want you to tell the Air Force to…"

"I know Max." the Chief nodded sadly. "When it comes down to it, I know you and Ninety-Nine are ready to sacrifice your lives to protect the country and the world."

Max frowned and declared.

"No, I want you to tell the Air Force to wait till I jump OFF the semi before sending the air strike! Preferably with a two hour head start—" Max pouted, tilting his head as he wriggled his downward facing palm. "—minimum an hour, fifty-five minutes."


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4**

Mount Colossal rose, seemingly endlessly towards the Rocky Mountains skyline. Every one of it's faces was drenched by the endless snowfall with pockets building up in the mountain's jagged terrain, deeper than any human could stand with their heads above the snow. This transformed the mountain into a giant, elongated mound of white, pitted with black where spurs of it's rock broke through the snow defiantly. Mount Colossal stood as it had for thousands of years, reaching eternally skyward with it's 5 summits, each of them above 14,000 feet in height.

At it's eastern face, leading up to it's peak was the well-known, aptly named hiking path, the Mount Colossal Trail, now barely visible under the snow. Being a class 2 on the Yosemite Decimal Scale, this path accorded tourists and hikes with minimal skill, a bearable challenge long as they possess a high physical fitness. With just a pair of comfortable hiking boots, hikers could scramble up the path, now and then using their hands to reach the peak in relative safety.

As such, it was obvious that the lone vehicle, now emerging from the treeline at 12000 feet, approached Mount Colossal by it's much steeper and treacherous western face. However, barely had it appeared out of the treeline did it disappear again, a small speck of moving white barely visible against the snow covered terrain, into an almost invisible valley at the base of the western face of the mountain.

This valley was almost undetectable from the air but down on the ground, it was nearly 200 feet wide. The geographical feature cut a deep groove into the base of the mountain at one point of the western face leading almost directly to Mount Colossal's nearly 2000 ft prominence.

The vehicle was a heavy duty off-road, hard top Fiat 1101 Campagnola, painted white to blend in with the surroundings and to look as un-military as possible. As it rumbled down the rugged valley floor, closer to the mountain's prominence, the walls of the valley on either side, formed by the rapidly rising body of the mountain got higher and higher till it blocked out the setting sun.

Sitting inside in the driver's seat wrapped in a brown belted parka coat was Kerstin, her tawny hair pulled back into a neat bun directly at the back of her head. Her hands in black leather gloves backed by the power of her steel toned biceps, deltoids and pronator teres gripped the Fiat 1101's steering wheel with unwavering control despite the continuous jerks and bouncing of the vehicle. Her emerald eyes turned the white landscape bright green as they reflected in her irises.

Next to her sat in the passenger seat sat the lean, dark haired KAOS agent who had originally been monitoring the sensors in the forests at their hideouts, now wrapped in a dull green parka coat, his sculpted cheekbones and hard distinctive square jaw as still as a statue while his inky black eyes scanned the valley floor and walls ahead and their destination.

Inside the back of the Fiat in the inward facing seats, on one side, sat another KAOS agent wrapped in a long blue coat, with light brown hair trimmed in a buzz cut with a long oval face and intense hazel eyes beneath a low forehead. He sat, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees while facing him, lounging in the other seat in a black parka coat, arms spread out on the railings inside the Fiat, was Gerd, light blond ivy league cut head leaning back and eyes closed.

"Vee are approaching zer vall."

"Gut. Vight on schedule." Gerd noted without moving or opening his eyes.

"I don't see zer sentries." Kerstin noted her emerald irises flicking left and right. "Vilson. Do you see zhem?"

Wilson next to her, leaned forward ever so slightly, his nearly lifeless black eyes scanning the wall of the mountain at the end of the valley and the walls on either side.

"I don't see em." His deep, rumbling voice drawled.

"Zhere are six of zhem, three on each side—" Gerd sighed from the back, head still leaning back and eyes still closed. "—on zer left vall, zer first vun ees four feet from zer vall inside a crevice, zer ozher two are six feet ahead of him behind two boulders, on zer left vall, first vun seven feet from zer vall behind a rock, zer other two crammed inside a crevice in five feet in front of him."

"What are you talking about?" Wilson rumbled, his eyes squinting.

"I zon't see anyvun." Kerstin added.

"Klehr?" Gerd asked.

The hazel eyed, buzz cut KAOS agent turned his head to look out the windshield leaning in the direction for a moment before shaking his head.

"Nuzzing."

"You all vould be DEAD vithout me!" Gerd laughed

"Stop being so FULL of yourself Gerd!" Kerstin snapped over her shoulder.

"Zhey are zhere!" Gerd chortled shaking his head, still not bothering to open his eyes as they kept rumbling on. "I could pick zhem out zer moment vee entered zer valley even from back heya! Zhese dummkopft amerikanisch have a secret base een zer mountains vhen zhey have NO izea of mountain varfare! I could kill zhem all from heya!"

"Your great solution to everysing." Kerstin scowled as she eased back on the gas pedal.

The tires of the Fiat 1101 slowed to a snow crunching stop. It was about 50 feet in front of the dead end of the valley, which was formed by a 200 feet wide section of mountain which rose skyward for over 14,000 feet beyond what the eye could see. As large as the width of the rock wall was, it was microscopic compared to the entire mountain of course. The rock wall between the valley walls was as with every other inch of the landscape here, covered in snow that drifted off into the air from gushes of wind every now and then.

Immediately, no sooner had their vehicle stopped, then 6 figures, dashed out from the walls on either side in white blurs, exactly from the locations where Gerd said they would be, combat boots crunching nosily in the snow covered ground, sending showers of white flying with every step.

Kerstin noted immediately, they were men dressed in artic combat gear comprising white fatigues, boots and combat helmets. The last was covered in a white cloth to complete their camouflage and short white parkas were worn over their fatigue shirts against the cold with white webbings over this holding their ammunition pouches, water, bayonet and other assorted equipment. Immediately two of them stopped about 10 feet in front of the Fiat, weapons pressed to their shoulders aimed at the windshield at Kerstin and Wilson.

The KAOS agents could see clearly, the weapons the men held were basic M16 assault rifles with 20 round magazines and 3-pronged or "duckbill" flash suppressors now aimed directly at their heads. Swathes of white cloth were wrapped around the triangular handguards and the butt stocks to decrease their visibility against the snow. The soldiers' eyes focused unwaveringly through the tinted lenses of their white ski goggles down the rear and front sights of their M16s.

Standing off to either side of the Fiat were another 2 soldiers, the one on the left aiming his M16 at the Kerstin via the driver's side window from a distance of 5-6 feet away while on the other side, another soldier on the right side aimed his M16 above the quarter panel at the Fiat's hard top.

The last two soldiers stood just a few feet from the rear bumper of the 1101 Campagnola, M16 butt stock to shoulders and aiming right at Gerd and Klehr through the rear windshield of the vehicle's hard top which was flipped open, hinged at the top edge.

Every one of the KAOS agents now had their gloved hands up and were holding in one hand, a military ID card while Gerd in addition, held a sealed envelope in another gloved hand.

"This is a restricted area! Identify yourselves!" one of the soldiers at the rear ordered.

"Good evening airmen!" Gerd nodded in his best "accent". "Captain Thomas Colen Essex, Air Force Logistics Command out of Hill Air Force Base. The driver is Staff Sergeant Katherine Ellis. We're here da install the new Level Six Classified, KR-Seven-Zero-A anti-toxin and biological agent filters for Area Fifty-Three-D's ventilation system. To that end, these are our Air Police escorts, Senior Airman Yates here with me—" Klehr nods in the direction of the duckbill suppressor aimed at his head. "—and up front, Airman First Class Jackson. We have our IDs here and our orders."

Every M16 of the soldiers remained aimed at their targets as the soldier who spoke now demanded.

"Authenticate. The migrating birds fly low over the sea."

To which Gerd nods and replies.

"Shade-less windows admit no light."

"Airman, authenticate. The eagle flies north of Bald Mountain." The soldier now addresses Klehr.

With his best "accent" Klehr replies.

"The Kaluga swims south down the Amur River."

"Driver, authenticate. The red snow falls down the white mountain."

Kerstin turns her tawny head slightly over her shoulder to reply.

"The crystal waters flow through the green meadow!"

"Passenger up front, authenticate. Are the rains turning torrential up the Amazon?"

"The storms never relent, the floods continue." Rumbled Wilson over his shoulder.

"IDs and orders." The soldier proceeded.

The two guards on either side of the Fiat moved in to examine the ID cards that Kerstin and Wilson provided with their gloved hands still raised while the talking guard examined both Gerd and Klehr's IDs and the sealed orders.

The two soldiers to the side shouted "clear" upon confirming Kerstin and Wilson's IDs and the talking solider took a while longer to confirm Gerd and Klehr's IDs and the orders before also shouting the same to his colleagues.

All the guards now lowered their M16s and the 2 in front walked off to stand by the valley walls while the talking guard handed back the IDs and orders to Gerd and Klehr, nodding his helmeted head and snow goggled visage as he stated.

"Thank you Captain Essex. Senior Airman Rodriguez. Welcome to Area Fifty-Three-D sir!"

"Thank you Rodriguez." Gerd nodded.

One of the soldiers in front spoke into a walkie-talkie. Kerstin and Wilson could not hear what he said but the next second, both of them didn't care as an earthquake like rumble reverberated through the entire valley. The ground did not shake but snow started raining off the section of the mountain before them.

Then, it took them some effort not to gape as a massive slab of the mountain before them, comprising of the entire width of the wall and stretching upward for about 70 feet, started "tilting" upwards. The slab of mountain kept rising before their eyes, snow falling off it's lower edge, lifted by some form of giant unseen hinges at the top edge.

Kerstin could see that the slab was at least 20 feet thick at it's side, carved out of the rock of the mountain itself. As the slab rose and rumbled, they could hear the massive hidden machinery that moved it and slowly, they saw what laid beneath.

A huge rectangle of matte gray metal, about 200 feet wide and 50 feet high.

Looking at Area 53D on the inside, you could never imagine that it was clothed within a majestic 14,000 ft mountain. The entire space was illuminated by artificial lighting. It was longer than it was wide with a width just slightly greater than the 200 foot wide doors at it's western end in accordance to the orientation of Mount Colossal. The length making up the hangar's North and South walls stretching into the mountain exceeded 500 feet. The entire height and width of the east wall at the far end, facing the huge door was an internal building with forward angled ceiling to floor black glass paned windows at the third floor overlooking the hangar floor.

Running along the walls of the North and South walls, 2 and a half storeys above the hangar floor were steel catwalks with waist high handrails supported by solid plates of steel. The eastern ends of the 2 catwalks connected to the internal building at which there was a door for each of them leading into the second storey. A third catwalk ran along the wall of the internal building about 6 feet below the bottom of the angled glass windows. This catwalk was shorter and stopped about 5 feet at each end from the North and South walls but were connected to the other 2 higher catwalks by a metal staircase.

On the hangar floor at the north and south walls about 20 feet from the internal building at the east end were 8 revetments, 4 at each wall taking up about 180 feet of the hangar's length. And parked within each of these 3 sided blast walls were the primary concerns of Area 53D—the 8, prototype AV-Seven-Z Harrier jet fighters. Mechanics and engineers in green flight duty uniforms swarmed over 2 of the aircraft, busy with maintenance with tools laying all over the floor within each of the affected revetments.

More than 50 feet westwards after the 4th revetment at the south wall, was a large semi-circular tunnel entrance, measuring itself, 70 feet in diameter. The tunnel stretched deep inside the mountain southwards and the floor of the tunnel was divided into 2 lanes by lines of bright yellow paint and each lane had arrows painted in it depicting the direction it was meant to be used for, one leading into the tunnel and the other coming out into the hangar. These painted lines extended from the tunnel entrance out across the hangar floor for about a 100 feet before turning at a right angle down the length of the hangar and between the 2 sets of revetments, stopping in alignment with the last set of 3 sided barriers, closest to the internal building.

Patrolling the floor of the hangar and the catwalks were U.S.A.F Air Police who constantly swept every inch of the hangar with steely eyed, unrelenting vigilance. Unlike the guards outside the hangar, they wore standard solid green combat uniforms and black combat boots, topped with slightly darker green flak jackets featuring ultramarine background cloth tapes at a level above where the breast pockets were on their fatigue shirts underneath. White letterings were sewn into the cloth tapes spelling out "U.S. AIR FORCE" on the left and their last names on the right. Clipped to their flak jackets, beneath the left side cloth tape was the silver-plated U.S. Air Force Air Police Shield with blue and white inlays which threw back the ceiling lights as each Air Police moved about the floor and catwalks.

Over their mostly buzz cut or butch cut hair, the Air Police wore distinctive dark blue berets of serge wool affixed with a fabric MAJCOM flash depicting a sky and clouds background with a steel gauntlet hand clutching red lightning bolts and an olive branch with the words "STRATEGIC AIR COMMAND" bordering it's base.

Several pouches on their flak jackets held spare 20 round magazines for their M16 assault rifles which each Air Policeman held against their chest, supported by the sling that went around their necks and shoulders, with the duckbill muzzle pointed towards the floor. In addition to their primary weapon, each Air Police personnel wore a black leather utility belt with a holstered blued, 4 inch barrelled Smith & Wesson Model 15 revolver.

As the Air Police personnel moved through their patrol routes on the hangar floor, large olive green forklifts and white enclosed cab tow tractors cruised along the painted lanes in the respective directions. The forklifts were mostly loaded with either crates or galvanized steel pallets with vertical beams and horizontal beams that divided each transport structure into 8 sections in 2 rows of 4, each holding an orange, 5 foot high canister of SRP-50. The tow tractors were functioning mostly as transports inside the vast hangar though some of them hauled trailers of various equipment and parts needed.

There were several ordinary vehicular parking lots marked out on the hangar floor at both the north and south walls at the west end with 5 on either side of the massive hangar doors. A few vehicles, comprised mostly of unmarked hard top land rovers and snowcats took up some of the lots.

But one only had to look up to see the most striking feature of the hangar which brought about much greater attention than even the 8 fully armed prototype jet fighters. Mounted in the ceiling, just forward and clear of the 8 revetments, were 2 M61A1 Vulcans. The 6-barrel, Gatling-style rotary cannons were housed in armoured gun turrets that enabled it to turn a full 360 degrees horizontally as well as afford it a vertical fire arc of 90 degrees from the plane of the ceiling.

The turrets were mounted about 100 feet apart and at the moment, the 6-barrels of each M61A1 Vulcan were whining softly as they swivelled up and down slowly vertically while their turrets rotated them horizontally.

An Air Police on the north wall's catwalk, Airman First Class insignias on his fatigue sleeves with the brim of his beret stretched tight over his buzz cut, scowled at the swivelling barrel of the cannon.

"I swear if Appleby points that thing at us ONE-MORE-TIME he'll find himself waking up tomorrow morning, an ICICLE outside!"

"Would you cool it Mitchell!" hissed Airman First Class Hale to his right pretending to look elsewhere in the hangar his own hand tight on his M16 grip at his chest. "If he knows he's getting to us he'll just keep doing it!"

"There he goes a-GAIN!" Mitchell growled as the right turret rotated horizontally to the right and the 6 barrelled cannon whined downwards just enough so it pointed at them on the catwalk at the north wall.

Inside the internal buildings 3rd floor, behind the angled black glass windows overlooking the hangar floor, was the command and communications centre. The nerve centre of the installation, was a room no more than 30 foot square, positioned right at the centre of the 3rd floor, taking up 5 of the angled windowpanes, each one 11 feet in height and 6 feet wide. A singular sliding door of gray metal at the centre of the rear wall provided the only access to the C&C centre.

Control panels and consoles with blinking lights lined the C&C's right and left walls, some of them with CCTV screens on them giving a view of various areas of the base with a few more occupying the floor area.

About 5 to 6 men and women, mostly in green Flight Duty Uniforms manned the various consoles and terminals and soft chatter permeated non-stop throughout the entire room as reports and updates were received and provided via headsets.

Forward of the rest of the terminals in the room, aligned with central forward-angled floor to ceiling window pane, about 7 feet from the glass was a small curved console. Seated behind the apex of the curve was a slightly built airman in his early twenties with light brown hair and square glasses perched on his small nose with insignias of Senior Airman on his flight suit sleeves and "APPLEBY" on his name tape.

Senior Airman Appleby at the moment was smiling happily as his hands manipulated 2 control columns on the console. Set in the console before him were also 2 CCTV screens each one featuring a Duplex crosshair type reticle. The bars of the crosshairs were thicker at the perimeter and thin out towards the middle with a modification of a target circle at the centre for added precision.

As he pushed, pulled or twisted the control columns, the views on the screen moved along with the M61A1 cannons, reflecting exactly where the weapons were aimed. Appleby rotated the right hand control column on it's base and he chuckled as the right side turret swivelled and the Duplex cross hairs on the right side targeting screen swept from the hangar doors over to the north wall. The crosshair's targeting circle stopped right on Mitchell on the catwalk.

Appleby chuckled again with teenage glee, bouncing in his seat as Mitchell's image on the targeting scope screen, glared right back at the Vulcan cannon and taking his hand off his M16's grip, the Air Police pointed at the cannon before putting both his fists together and twisting them in opposite directions as though he was wringing dry a piece of cloth.

Appleby of course knew Mitchell wasn't envisioning a wet cloth in his big fists which made him laugh even louder.

"Appleby, cut that OUT!" came a female voice from behind the gunner.

Appleby simply threw back his head laughing at this as though he was a conquering warrior. The source of the caution, a lean bodied Senior Airman of the same age with the last name "CODDINGTON" manning a console behind the gunner to his right facing the angled windows, her glossy raven hair pulled back into a neat bun over which she wore a communications headset, as she scowled at her colleague.

"I'm just making sure the cannons are operating within established parameters every ten minutes as required by standing orders!" Appleby insisted with mock conviction.

"We all know that's NOT what you're doing!" Coddington swore rolling her hazel eyes set above her sharp nose and symmetrically distinct cheekbones that sloped down to a sharp chin. "I KNOW Mitchell is an insufferable bully who steals the crumb cakes your mom sends you…"

"AND fills my boots with muddy snow AND writes "MAMA'S-BOY" in bright pink paint across the ass of all my flight suits and service uniforms…"

"Yes, hence the term—insufferable BULLY!" Coddington gestured with her hands. "But THIS will not STOP that!"

"Let the kid have his fun, Coddington!" Laughed an Airman First Class with dark blond hair and name tape spelling out "CAHN" seated at a console at the right wall where he monitored several manual and screen readouts. "I mean, with no girl in the outside world, he's gadda up hold his manhood somehow!"

"Don't en-COURAGE him!" Coddington exclaimed turning to her right, hazel eyes flashing. "If Mitchell tosses him out in the snow in his underwear again, YOU'RE gonna drag him back in this time!"

"Oh! Oh!" Appleby laughing, bouncing up and down in his seat as he pointed at the right targeting video screen. "Mitchell is aiming his rifle at me! Hale's flipping out trying da stop him!"

"That's it," Coddington sighed bowing her head and flopping her eyes onto her palm as her elbow rested on the console. "after I drag you in from the snow again, you can thaw your-SELF out this time! I swear all of you…"

Coddington stopped herself and her sharp chinned face flipped up as a voice came filtering over the earpiece of her headset. After listening for a few moments she spoke into the microphone.

"Olympus to Goshawk Five acknowledged, stand by."

Swivelling in her chair, Coddington called out.

"Major Parish! Goshawk unit has confirmed arrival of the crew from Hill, for the KR-Seven-Zero-A filtration system retrofit. Written orders and IDs have been verified and authentication passed."

A tall man in his early thirties with butch cut dark brown hair, his broad shouldered frame encased in the light blue Air Force service uniform with the stylized golden oak leaf insignias on his service jacket's shoulder sleeves, turned at the left wall where he was speaking with another green flight suited light blonde female airman showing him a clipboard. At least 4 rows of multi-coloured service ribbons and ribbon devices were pinned above his left breast pocket along with various badges above and below them.

"Right on time." Parish nodded as he glanced at his watch. "Alright. Appleby! Point the M-Sixty-Ones where they're supposed to—"

"Yes sir." Appleby nodded twisting the control columns.

Both M61As pointed forward then as Appleby pushed down on them, whined smoothly as they swivelled down about 30 degrees from the ceiling till both Duplex recticles on the targeting scopes focused on the hangar doors.

"—Maclise. Notify Captain Kowarski da activate his escort detail.—"

An Air Policeman in his twenties with Airman First Class insignias on his sleeves, sans beret and M16 sitting at the last console at the left wall towards the windows nodded before turning towards the controls which featured 6 CCTV monitors in 2 columns. He adjusted his headset which fitted over his ash brown buzz cut while his other hand flicked over switches and buttons in a blur.

Standing on the internal building catwalk with the bottom of the angled glass windows just a few inches above his beret, Airman Bennett's lean African American features frowned as he looked out over the busy hangar floor.

With his right hand resting on the pistol grip of his downward pointing M16 over his chest, he lifted his left hand in a gesture as he addressed the Air Policeman standing to his right.

"So what you're saying is, come next year, instead of calling us Air Police, we're gonna be the—Security Police."

While this catwalk was shorter than the ones on the North and South walls, it was wider at about 10 feet to allow the Air Police patrolling it some head clearance from the leaning glass window above, so Senior Airman Freebairn stood more than 5 feet in front of his junior comrade at the railing. With one hand on the handguard of his M16 and leaning with the other on the catwalk's railing, the stocky built Freebairn in his early forties answered as he gazed over the activity on the hangar floor.

"Yep."

"And the difference being?" Bennett asked squinting at the ceiling.

"Supposedly emphasizes the combat and security parts of our job more." Was the explanation.

"Combat huh?" Bennett noted with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh yeah." Freebairn nodded. "I hear they're planning for squadrons da train in light infantry tactics and special weapons."

"That sounds good." Bennett arched his eyebrows, tilting his bereted head.

"I don't mind what they call or teach us, long as they keep us here don't ship us off da Nam."

Freebairn declared turning to face the Airman while leaning his back against the railing.

"Is it that bad over there?" Bennett enquired.

"Hell yeah son!" Freebairn nodded emphatically "My brother in law shipped over there with the 9th Infantry. Shipped back two months later after losing half his right foot!"

Bennett's eyes widened as he asked.

"V-C landmine?"

"No jungle rot."

As Bennett gaped, Freebairn continued.

"That's what I'm saying boy! As if the Việt Cộng and N-V-A aren't bad enough! The HEAT and the humidity alone could eat you a-LIVE!" Pausing to spread his arms and look left and right, emphasizing their surroundings, the Senior Airman continued. "Just check out this sweet gig we gat here! We are—in-SIDE a MOUNTAIN! NOTHING could get us in here! Aside from a few members of the top brass and us—no one even KNOWS about this place! And best of all, it's COOL—and DRY!"

Bennett nodded in acknowledgement as he pointed to his own headgear.

"Plus, it was nice of the commander da approve these new berets for us. Those big tin helmets are just not patrol-friendly."

"Another plus!" Freebairn nodded extending an arm to gesture his agreement while he turned his head to look back out over the hangar. "Captains' out there with the escort detail. Boys from Hill must be here."

Bennett joined Freebairn at the railing to see 6 Air Policemen, marching in 3 man columns led by a tall man. They stopped about 30 yards from the hangar doors and Bennett and Freebairn could see the leader raising a walkie-talk.

"Major." Airman First Class Maclise swivelled his chair slightly to his left, his right hand fingers touching his headset's small headphone. "Captain Kowarski and escort detail are in position."

Parish turned towards the communications console.

"Coddington inform Goshawk unit we are opening hangar doors.—"

"Yes Major. Olympus to Goshawk Five. Come in Goshawk Five…"

"—Staff Sergeant, open er up, 6 foot clearance."

As Major Parish walked forward to the angled glass windows, a dark haired stocky man in his late thirties at the right wall standing next to Cahn, Staff Sergeant rank insignia on his flight suit sleeves and "HIGGS" on his last name tape, flipped a toggle switch on the wall controls.

Immediately in the hangar, a klaxon alarm sounded which immediately caused personnel near the hangar door to run clear. As Parish watched the sprinting green clad figures on the hangar floor from the angled windows, Higgs flipped a few more toggle switches that triggered a massive rumble throughout the entire hangar. No visible movement of equipment was visible but the sound of hidden machinery, gears and servos growled throughout the installation told everyone that a slab of the mountain's wall was lifting upwards beyond the hangar doors.

As the mechanical rumbling continued, Higgs kept his eyes on an indicator panel which finally lit up green before taking hold of a downward angled T-shaped lever and pushed it up slowly by a few inches.

A loud but dull _boom_ echoed through the entire hangar along with the hum of invisible pistons and finally, the giant hangar doors began sliding up slowly. About two feet off the floor, the leading edge of the door was revealed to be lined with square tooth like protrusions which lifted out of corresponding square indentations across the threshold of the hangar. Fog began swirling in wintry clouds at the threshold where the frosty mountain air met the climate controlled temperature of the hangar, in a dance between untamed nature and technological control.

"Appleby, weapons hot." Parish stated.

Appleby's thumbs touched a toggle switch atop each of the control columns and two red lights on the consoles blinked on under each of the targeting scopes.

"Weapons hot sir." Appleby confirmed as his steady hands on the control columns kept the cross-hairs of the targeting scopes trained on the swirling fog across the threshold of the rising hangar door.

"Keep those sights trained on the hangar doors till they close."

At a height of 6 feet, the sliding hangar doors came to a stop and every personnel on the hangar floor felt the temperature drop several degrees.

As the frost and fog began to clear with the air of the hangar surrendering to the limitless hordes of nature against which it could not prevail, the sound of a vehicle engine drifted through and a Fiat 1101 Campagnola, its paint whiter than the dissipating cold, cruised in, it's roof clearing the 6 foot space created for it effortlessly.

"Right close her up!" Parish ordered the moment the vehicle was in and Higgs yanked the T-shaped lever back down again.

Another boom echoed through the hangar as the door began to slide back down as the Fiat 1101 was guided by the escort team over to one of the vehicle parking lots at the North wall. As Bennett and Freebairn watched, the rest of the detail walked over to the Fiat and the tail board of the vehicle dropped down for a lean man with Ivy League cut light blond hair in a parka coat to hope out nimbly.

A resounding _bang_ echoed through the hangar at this time as the hangar doors locked back into place and the less refined rumbling of the mountain slab door started up again outside as it began to swing back down. The blond man immediately removed his parka coat to reveal the light blue service uniform underneath, conforming to his lean physique with tailored perfection. Light glinted off the metal twin bar insignias on his shoulder sleeves while 2 modest rows of service ribbons and ribbon devices adorned the left breast of his uniform's single-breasted coat.

"Well aint that just getting more common every day!" Freebairn tossed a hand out as he remarked.

Bennett saw instantly the source of the Senior Airman's declaration as a woman, tawny hair pulled back into a neat regulation bun, stepped down from the driver's side of the Fiat, dressed in a standard green flight duty uniform. Despite the distance and bulk of the flight suit, they could still make out the strength in her frame and the generous curves of her breasts as she tugged off her gloves. Bennett whistled in astonishment at her sharp features, apparent even at this range as emerald light danced from her eyes.

"I hear in a couple years, they're talkin bout letting women in the Air Police." Freebairn sighed as the tawny haired female airman walked over to join the captain from the Fiat.

"Well." Bennett sighed looking longingly. "There're worst things than having someone like that watch your back on patrol. We'll just hafta learn da actually watch her…BACK when we're…watching her back."

As Freebairn groaned in acknowledgment, they noted another 2 occupants stepping down from the Fiat. From the back with the captain was a long faced man with light brown buzz cut hair. His hazel eyes under his low forehead seemed to burn at everything around him unceasingly while the man getting down from the passenger side, standing at an impressive 6 foot 4 with broad chest and shoulders had cheekbones that were as distinctively sculpted as the female Airman's with a hard square jaw while his inky black eyes opposite to the man in the back seemed nearly lifeless yet aware of every detail around them.

"Air Police escorts." Freebairn noted the similar dressing and hand weapons of the two men sans beret.

Bennett squinted as he saw the primary weapons the 2 men held slung similarly at chest levels—compact with smooth, sightless 8 inch barrels, long narrow box magazines and telescoping one-piece wire stock at the moment collapsed.

"Huh. That the M-Three-A-One?"

"Yeah." Freebairn noted. "Too cramp inside that jeep for the M-sixteens. They'd end up taking out each other's eyes just swinging em into position in a crisis."

As Kerstin reached him, Gerd tossed his gloves back into the Fiat and turned to meet the approaching Air Police detail. The Air Policeman in the lead was just 2 inches shorter than Wilson but just as well built, with tirelessly scrutinizing gray eyes beneath the line of his beret. Noting the distinctive captain's bars in white on green background on his collars reaching out over his flak jacket, Gerd also observed the jagged scar just touching his jawline on the left side and reaching down his neck and disappearing under the collar.

Gerd put on his blue, peaked service cap and as the Air Police captain approached, he had to tilt his head slightly to clear the peak and meet the man's gray eyes.

"Captain Essex?" The captain spoke and when Gerd nodded, he continued. "Kowarski. Commanding Officer of the Air Police detachment here. Your IDs and orders please."

"Certainly Captain." Gerd nodded handing them over again while other members of the detail inspected the IDs of Kerstin, Wilson and Klehr.

While Captain Kowarski again inspected the ID and the orders, Gerd's crystal blue eyes noted without moving, the position of all the other Air Police around them, even those not in the detail and the seemingly casual but tactical position of where the captain and his detail were standing. At the same time, he still had to contain his awe at the facility he was in. The size and elaborate design of the hangar, inside a mountain no less was impressive despite having seen countless military bases of all sizes, many secret, throughout his military career

Finally, Kowarski handed the orders and ID back to Gerd nodding.

"They seem in order. Welcome to Area-Fifty-Three-D, Captain."

"Pleasure to be here Captain." Gerd nodded in return as he shook the big hand of the captain. "Has the equipment arrived? We'd like da get started quickly."

"It's waiting for you in engineering and climate control." Kowarski tilted his beret towards the internal building. "My men will escort you throughout the installation."

Gerd blinked and looked about at the stony faces of the Air Police detail around them.

"ALL of them? Is that really necessary? It's gonna get pretty cramped in there while we're working." Gerd grimaced.

"Base commander's standing orders, Essex." Kowarski shrugged his big shoulders, creaking his flak jacket. "All external personnel, military or otherwise must be accompanied at all times while inside Area-Fifty-Three-D. I'm sure Colonel Sedgewick at Hill explained this to you when he sent you over."

Gerd's blue eyes squinted beneath the service cap as he responded.

"Colonel Sedgewick? Colonel Sedgewick transferred out to Andrews three months ago. You mean Colonel Addington right?"

Kowarski nodded without a flinch.

"Of course. My mistake. If you'll follow me, we'll get you started."

The entire group proceeded with Gerd walking in the lead next to Kowarski, Kerstin, Wilson and Klehr behind him while the 6 man Air Police detail walked on either side of them.

"And how is Colonel Addington?" Kowarski asked conversationally as they walked across the vast hangar floor, their boots clopping in sharp unison. "Still complaining bout his injury?"

"He's fine. And yes." Gerd replied and titled his head as he added. "Gripes on and on bout his knee and how it hurts when it rains. I mean, I KNOW a bullet to the knee cap must hurt and I'm sorry he's in pain but come ON! All due respects to the colonel and all but how much does it rain in Utah?!"

"He focuses on the pain da hide his true concern. They almost retired him on disability. The Air Force is his life." Kowarski explained as forklifts whizzed back into the tunnel entrance in the south wall.

"I know, I know." Gerd nodded in agreement as he kept pace with the longer stride of the captain. "Plus I heard he used to love rock climbing which has to be out of the question now with his knee. Can he still hunt?"

"How'd you know bout that?" Kowarski asked seemingly casually but Gerd despite the height disadvantage saw his gray eyes focusing via his peripheral vision. "Colonel rarely mentions that to anyone."

"Briefing in his office. Saw a picture of him in the woods with bunch of friends with rifles around this huge…um…deer…or something?" Gerd replied

"Caribou." Kowarski nodded with a lopsided smile on his hard features. "Six hundred and thirty eight pound bull. Canada, Northwest Territories in sixty-two. And I'm privileged da say, I'm one of those friends in the picture. Colonel Addington took that beast down with one shot from nearly two hundred yards out. It likely never felt a thing. Most important aspect of hunting. Focus, discipline and skill for a quick, clean kill."

"More of an ice hockey guy myself but I can appreciate that." Gerd agreed wholeheartedly as they proceeded past the revetments.

The Kenworth W900s sped along the rugged snow covered roads without slackening speeds, their windshield wipers whipping back and forth against the unrelenting snow fall. Inside the box trailer in the lead red coloured Kenworth W900, all the KAOS agents were on their feet with their hazmat jumpsuits on completely now except for the cowls as they checked their weapons and equipment. The trailer was filled with the metallic clacking of sub-machine gun bolts along with handgun slides being racked on receivers. Side-arms were secured inside holsters on utility belts or in shoulder-holsters worn over their hazmat suits and assorted electronic beeps and clicks also accompanied the sounds of the weapon preparations. SS-19 stood as ever, still as a statue at the rear bumper of the matt brown Land Rover watching over the men and noting every preparation they made without moving.

At the Denver Mint, the Chief with his bluish gray tweed sports jacket on over his suit and brown and black striped tie stood in a large room filled with machines and generators as he spoke into his wrist communicator T-37, finger pressed to the IEM in his right ear.

"Colonel. I know this might be difficult to believe. But you MUST trust me on this! KAOS is coming for you, right now as we speak!" the Chief declared.

Despite the electronic interference and range Colonel Patrick T Archer's voice lost none of it's gravity and strength as it filtered through the IEM.

" _Thaddeus. I've known you long enough to know you're not one da exaggerate or exploit a threat on national security for personal gain. So if you say KAOS is gonna try and steal the S-R-P-Fifty, I BELIEVE you. But you hafta understand, it IS a bit difficult for me to comprehend. Even KAOS wouldn't DARE try da get into a place like this!"_

"I wish that were so colonel." The Chief sighed shaking his ever increasingly balding head as he paced back and forth. "You must have seen by now, reports on the robberies KAOS executed over the last month—a heavily guarded diamond fair at a hotel, three armoured cars at the same time and the National Museum."

" _I heard the president yelling over the phone in the oval office at you about them—even all the way from where I am!"_ Archer chuckled making the Chief sigh in some admission of his own failure but the colonel switched flawlessly back into focus as he continued. " _But seriously. SOFT targets compared to this hangar."_

"Then you know colonel that KAOS managed to neutralize those targets because they have in their possession the U.S Army Chemical Corps' tranquilizer gas, _Super Sleep_."

" _Yes and Area-Fifty-Three-D as a classified military installation is fully equipped with the antidote. As per standing orders, every personnel here is issued with a syrette carried with them at all times and verified by unit supervisors every day at role call. So we've trumped their ace in the hole, Thaddeus. The only way they can take us is in an all-out frontal assault! And I've gat a mountain wall, a 5 foot thick titanium-steel alloy door with two M-Sixty-One-A-One Vulcans pointing at it along with almost a hundred Air Police that says that will NOT work out for them."_

"I know! Area-Fifty-Three-D's defences are most impressive." The Chief acknowledged but shook his head in frustration as he continued. "But KAOS is very clever! They wouldn't attempt this unless they've found a way around all that!"

" _Well, KAOS is in your ball park Thaddeus. You know em best. So tell me. What can we expect?"_

"It could be anything! KAOS is also unpredictable." The Chief admits. "Thanks to their access to some of the greatest scientific minds of the third Reich, they are capable of vast technological and engineering innovations! For example, we already know they've managed to develop hazmat suits that are capable of protecting a person from topical absorption of _Super Sleep_ —something which the U.S Army Chemical Corps thought impossible! I wouldn't be surprised if they've managed to somehow ALTER _Super Sleep_ so our antidote is ineffective against it!"

" _Alright Chief. In that case we can't give them a chance to deploy the gas."_

"Right Colonel!" the Chief agreed. "Now, you say there is no way for KAOS to access your air-vents from the outside?"

" _That's right. They're camouflaged, sealed and monitored—by both sentries and electronic surveillance. Anything happens to any of them, we'll know and we can seal it off."_

"Then they will likely try to infiltrate the hangar with some form of advance team to deploy the gas! Like they did at the hotel and the National Museum. Personnel and supplies are transported to Area-Fifty-Three-D using unmarked vehicles? Semis?"

" _Yes. But we're not expecting any deliveries today so anyone that turns up will be blasted sky high! And you've given us the descriptions of the trucks that KAOS are in. We'll be on the lookout for them now. Actually Thaddeus, I don't mean to be an ass, but if you got close enough da get the descriptions of their vehicles why haven't you arrested them by now?"_

"That is a long story which I'll be glad to get into once this is over." The Chief shook his head before continuing. "Are you sure there aren't any off-base personnel scheduled to visit the hangar today? KAOS has shown great adeptness in the past at forging military and intelligence documents and orders with extreme accuracy. I can check with the Pentagon and the other airbases you liaise with to be sure."

" _Nope_ —" the sound of papers in files being flipped and clacking of a keyboard of a computer is heard as the colonel checked his records. "— _I've got the operations schedule for the whole month in front of me now. It's pretty quiet. No one's scheduled…wait…what the?"_

The Chief's blood turned colder than the mountain air at the shift in tone of his friend over the IEM.

"What is it Colonel?"

" _I…I don't'…Dammit_!" the Chief listened intently at Archer's exclamation waiting for an explanation which when it finally came, nearly caused his heart to stop several times. " _Thaddeus. We've got a problem. There IS someone coming to the base today. A crew from the Air Force Logistics Command out of Hill. Installing a new anti-toxin-biological agent filter to our ventilation. The orders are in the system, coming from Hill originating from the Pentagon itself so the paperwork at least is legit."_

"We can't take any chances Colonel!" the Chief declared. "Don't let the crew into the base until you've run a Top 4 Security Check on all of them!"

"Chief!"

The Chief turned at the voice behind him to see Porter at a door in the corner waving him over. The Chief hurried towards the door still talking.

" _Alright Thaddeus!"_ Archer's urgent tone filtered over the IEM into the Chief's ear. " _I'm alerting C &C and the Air Police not to let em in till…no. Oh no. Dammit! They're already here!"_

"What?!"

" _They arrived less than five minutes ago! It's a minor retrofit so my executive doesn't notify me. They're inside the base! A_ _Captain Thomas Colen Essex and a Staff Sergeant Katherine Ellis with two air police escorts."_

The Chief headed through the door and led by Porter, raced up a narrow flight of stairs as he kept talking.

"Can you detain them Colonel?"

" _I'm ordering our Air Police da hold them now and initiating the Top 4 Security Checks. Are you bringing any of your agents to reinforce us Thaddeus_?"

"I'm afraid I can't because of the cross-agency Code Z!" the Chief exclaimed as he burst through a door at the top of the staircase out into the snow filled evening air on the roof of the Denver Mint.

" _What about the Joint Chiefs and SecDef, Thaddeus_? _Can they authorize reinforcements from Cheyenne Mountain Complex?"_

"I was going to contact them after I speak with you."

" _I'll get hold of the Joint Chiefs and have them send help, while the Air Police are detaining the Hill team."_

"It'll probably be faster that way too. And don't' worry Patrick! I'm on my way in a chopper now to advise you on the ground! Keep me posted!" The Chief assured as he burst through a door onto the snow covered roof.

" _Got it! See you soon Thaddeus!"_

With that, the Chief followed Porter in a full run over the snow, their shoes sending snow flying as he raced to the helicopter that had landed at the centre of it. The Chief ducked his head against the swirling icy wind and whipping snowflakes from the spinning main and tail rotors of the helicopter as he neared it.

Inside the trailer of the lead W900, Drapikowski muttered as he checked his 34 round magazine before locking it home into the magazine housing on top of the barrel of his F1 submachine gun.

"That psycho Vollmar better have the gas pumped through every inch of that place before we get there! I'd hate da hafta shoot my way through dozens of heavily armed guards!"

"Da!" Baidukov agreed, cocking his Walther MPL. "Takes fun out of robbing un ki-ling iv zay fight back!"

"You two should vee a-SHAMED of yourselves!" Hayler snorted as he yanked the bolt handle on his MP submachine gun. "Und you call yourselves KILLERS!"

"You kil your way, we kil ow-was!" Baidukov retorted hefting his MPL up onto his shoulder.

"Vhat haz become of zer verld!" Hayler rolled his deep blue irises up at the trailer ceiling.

"Yeah, yeah we know! You kill your enemies face to face!" Drapikowski snarked.

"Idiota! Good way to GET killed!" Specchi laughed.

"Killing your enemies face to face ees zer GREATEST achievement of killers!" Hayler exclaimed but pausing briefly he looked up at the trailer's ceiling as he gestured with a circular motion of his right hand. "—Or, at zer very least, from zer SIDE eef vee ver flanking. VUT—" Hayler raised a gloved finger to emphasize as he kept looking upwards as though trying to recall an exact image or situation. "—eef zhey happen to TURN zheir backs vhile I vas shooting—say, eef zhey tried to run a-VAY or vun of zheir friends vas showing zhem zer latest poster of Betty Grable—zhen zhat ees not my fault!"

"Da, your skill useful wun you serve PIVO to Hinkel un hiz buddies vhile whareling PINK apron!" Baidukov declared and the 5 or more KAOS agents around them laughed and guffawed in unison.

Hayler's distinctive cheekbones and sharp chin hardened even further as he squinted at them and thrusted his face forward, bottom lip sticking out as he scowled at his fellow KAOS agents.

"Eet vas not PINK! Eet vas rose—pom-PADOUR! A colour made solely for the beautiful und great Marquise de Pompadour! Member of the court of France! Chief Mistress to King Louis XV! Thirteenth lady een vaiting to zer qveen of France, patron of architecture, arts und I don't understand how zhis is HELPING me vight now." Hayler sighed wearily rolling his light blue eyes to the trailer ceiling again as the men laughed on.

"Vait a minute!" Hayler exclaimed jabbing a gloved finger at Baidukov. "How zu YOU know avout me und my pink aprons?!"

"I read your file! Hinkel vas VERY detailed in veeport of you to Heydrich!" Baidukov laughed on, his big shoulders wobbling in the bulky white hazmat suit.

"Vhat?!" Hayler exclaimed blue eyes popping. "Vhy does KAOS keep a file on me und my pink APRONS?!"

"Not your KAOS file. Your S-S file!"

Hayler squinted sideways at Baidukov's mid twenties features stating.

"You DON'T look old enough to have fought een zer var."

"Net! I read it vhen I vas een zer K-G-B." Baidukov chuckled

"Oh!" Hayler nodded with understanding before looking left and right frantically with his eyes widened into 2 light blue moons as he demanded. "Vait! Vhy does zer K-G-B keep files on me und my pink aprons?!"

The dim light inside the box trailer of the second W900 was still enough to flicker off the 5 inch lugless barrel of Max's Colt Official police as he checked the chambers. He flicked the fully loaded cylinder with his thumb, sending it spinning with well-oiled clicks before slapping it back into the frame.

"Alright Ninety-Nine! If all goes according to the Chief's plan, we'll soon have S-S-Nineteen and her entire gang in custody." Max declared as he pushed his revolver back into it's shoulder holster under his Davy's gray sports jacket beneath his parka.

"Oh Max, I hope so." 99 shook her head causing her hair to brush her parka's shoulder pads as she leaned back against the pale gray Landrover. "If KAOS gets a hold of the X-Ten and the S-R-P-Fifty, the entire civilized WORLD would be in a lot of trouble!"

"Not to mention our side." Max noted with a tilt of his head.

"Max, who do you think hired KAOS to steal the fuel and the missile detectors?"

"It's probably more than one employer Ninety-Nine." Max shrugged. "Lots ev countries would like da get their hands on one or both. Russia, China, East Germany, you name em!"

"Oh Max—" 99 sighed tiredly, her eyelids sliding down over her blue eyes. "—Sometimes, I wonder whether everything we do…arms races in weapons of mass destruction, all the fighting and killing. Is it really worth anything in the end?"

"Yes." Max agreed nodding with a pouting lower lip. "Especially if WE don't win."

And as 99 frowned at Max he continued with wide eyes and a sweeping hand for emphasis.

"I mean, after all, we represent everything good, pure and decent in this world! Shouldn't we get to kill, maim and wipe out everyone ELSE on the planet FIRST?!"

99's soft mouth twisted in a smirk as she rolled her eyes sideways at him.

The Chief jogged through the woods, his shoes spraying snow with every step. The sun was going lower and lower behind the mountains and he knew he had to reach the valley before the light was gone for it was virtually impossible to find in the dark.

His feet suddenly sank to his knee in snow causing him to fall. Growling to muster his resolve, his breath fogging in the air, the Chief pulled himself to his feet and charged on. The helicopter had dropped him off a few miles away and he dared not risk coming closer. His only defence against the cold was the heavy parka he donned over his suit and bulky skiing gloves and even they were proving inadequate as the sun toiled it's final minutes. To make things worse, his shoes were filled with snow and ice freezing his feet, causing his body temperature to plummet further and he was shivering inside his parka.

Swearing that he never wanted to feel so cold or see so much snow and ice for a long time, the Chief finally caught sight of a reprieve in the tree line. Crunching his way up to it, he stopped to get his bearings and finally saw the west side of Mount Colossal as it lived up to it's name reaching towards the darkening skies. But the Chief did not look up for his objective was right there in the distance at ground level—the groove that was the valley he sought.

The Chief checked his watch on his left wrist for the time before lifting his right hand for the T-37 communicator, putting the plugged in IEM into his ear canal.

"Chief calling Agent Eighty-Six. Chief calling Agent Eighty-Six. Come in Eighty-Six."

A moment later, Max's nasal voice drilled it's way into his ear canal and sent him likely closer to an aneurysm each time he heard it as he had always suspected.

" _Eighty-Six here. What's your situation Chief?"_

"I'm on foot and I have Mount Colossal in sight." The Chief confirmed. "I expect to be speaking to Colonel Archer soon. What about on your side?"

Inside the rocking trailer, 99 was seated in the driver's seat of the second Land Rover with the door opened, her legs out and boots on the floor while she pressed a finger to the IEM in her ear and Max stood against the fender speaking on his T-37.

"Nothing much on this side Chief. But the road seems to be getting pretty bumpy so we gadda be getting closer to the mountain too." Max reported.

" _Alright Max. For now, do nothing to compromise your position. Once I reach Colonel Archer, we should have this wrapped up pretty quick. Now you won't be able to contact me once I'm inside Area Fifty-Three-D because it's shielded against radio interference from the outside. So wait for me to contact you."_

"Right Chief!" Max nodded before removing he IEM from his ear.

"Oh Max, I hope the Chief's alright." 99 said. "He's out there all alone, without any of our men with him."

"Don't worry Ninety-Nine." Max assured. "With all the men inside Area Fifty-Three-D and the reinforcements the Joint Chiefs'll send, KAOS doesn't stand a chance."

99 nodded slightly in agreement as she added.

"I know he probably couldn't have the helicopter land him right AT Area Fifty-Three-D cause' the pilot doesn't have the Code Z clearance. But it has to be FREEZING out there Max. For him to be out there on foot! We're sitting inside this trailer with these parkas and it's cold enough already!"

Max nodded with a pout in agreement.

"I know. Well fortunately, it's not every day that we end up in what feels like a giant freezer."

The Chief put away his T-37's IEM and pausing only to rummage with clumsy gloved fingers into a pocket on his parka, he set off again running on over the winter landscape.

Within a few minutes, he was running over the valley floor, the rising walls of the geographical feature, a tiny fragment of the sheer mass of the mountain itself, moving past his vision to either side of him. As his breath continued fogging the air in front of him just before he passed through it with his passage.

As he approached the dead end of the valley, close to the mountain's prominence, the walls on either side of him were so high he could not see where the top was. But none of that mattered to the Chief as he came to a stop, just 10 yards from the wall at the end of the valley. It was 200 feet wide of sheer rock, rising 14,000 feet upwards further than any eye could see. But the Chief had no time to marvel at this as he looked about him and called out, his voice echoing through the valley while reaching inside his parka with his right gloved hand to get to his sports jacket's inside pocket.

"Airmen! I know you're here! Please approach!"

Almost immediately, 4 figures in white appeared, 2 from either side of the wall and ran towards him, M16s pressed to their shoulders, sighting down the barrel as they moved. The Chief put up his gloved hands, holding his leather billfold with his identification in the right and waited till the 4 airmen stopped, boots compressing snow as they halted in a rough semi-circle before him, duckbill flash suppressors aimed.

"This is a restricted area! Identify yourself!" One of the men in the centre, his eyes hidden behind his ski goggles beneath his combat helmet stated.

"I am the Chief of CONTROL." The Chief declared. "Colonel Archer is expecting me urgently. My identification is here in my hand. I understand you have something to ask me, airman."

A millisecond passed before the airman who spoke did so again.

"Authenticate! Pussycat, pussycat, where have you been?"

"I've been to London to visit the Queen." The Chief answered.

"Elvis Presley hates hamburgers." The airman continued.

"The King never leaves the building."

"I-D."

The airman on the far left walked over and took the ID from the Chief's glove for examination. After a few seconds he nodded to the speaking airman and the remaining three airman lowered their M16s by a few inches.

"Thank you Chief of CONTROL. Senior Airman Rodriguez. Welcome to Area Fifty-Three-D! The commander is expecting you. Captain Kowarski will see you first."

"Thank you airman. Please lead the way."

With Rodriguez in the lead and the other 3 airman on either side of him and behind him, they jogged over to the wall on the left where the Chief saw another airman crouched inside a crevice in the wall. Two of the airman returned to their post in similar hiding places and the Chief followed Rodriguez with the fourth airman behind him down another deeper but just as narrow crevice in the wall just 10 feet from the first.

It was barely wide enough for any human being to move through and the Chief found his bulked up form due to the parka scrapping off snow and ice on the rough walls as he followed the men. After a minute or two of twisting and turning himself laterally to slide by jutting rocks on either side and snow falling on his shoulders and balding head, the walls finally widened into a clearing of sorts.

The rock wall reached up all around them, swathed in a crystalline layer of ice and Rodriguez led the Chief to a section of it indistinguishable from the rest. Rodriguez spoke something inaudible into his walkie-talkie which the Chief knew likely was some kind of pass word.

Immediately a low rumbling was heard and before his eyes, an oval section of the ice and snow encrusted rock wall about 6 feet high and just wider than a man, moved, swinging out like a door sending snow flying. Beyond it was a tunnel carved into the rock matching the shape of the door.

Without hesitation, Rodriguez led the Chief down this passageway, the "door" closing behind the trailing airman as they did. The passageway was dim and it seemed to go on perpetually as they ran along, their boots and shoes clopping and clacking on the rock floor.

After a few turns, the Chief finally saw what appeared to be a rectangle of matte-gray metal at the end. Rodriguez spoke again softly into his walkie-talkie and then he simply waited. The seconds ticked by and the Chief knew that they were likely being scanned by other security features.

"Did you men come up with that last pass phrase?" the Chief asked.

"Yes sir. We do love that one." Rodriguez's helmet nodded. "Too bad we gadda keep changing it every few days. Security and all."

"Don't worry son. The King goes on whether our pass phrases do or not." The Chief joked.

"Yes he does!" Rodriguez nodded wholeheartedly and added. "Though I'd wish he'd lay off the hamburgers. Some songs are immortal but singers usually aren't."

A mechanical whine interrupted their talk and with a hiss of a hermetic seal, the rectangle of steel swung open letting an intense blaze of light into the tunnel. Rodriguez led the Chief through the door.

When his eyes adjusted again to the light, the Chief found himself in an oval room with smooth concrete floors and walls, about the size of an Olympic swimming pool. A large display screen was mounted near one end with numerous rows of seats before it as well as weapons racks in the walls and a sitting area. The Chief realized this must be the rest and briefing area for the rotating shifts of guards just before he noted the tall, solid built man with an ugly scar on his neck almost completely hidden by the collar of his solid green fatigues, waiting for him.

His flak jacket topping his fatigues barely held his broad chest. His blue beret with the MAJCOM flash over his buzz cut titled forward as he greeted.

"Chief of CONTROL. Captain Kowarski, Air Police commander for Area-Fifty-Three-D." the officer spoke as the trailing airman came up to him and handed him the Chief's ID.

After inspecting it closely, he handed it back to the Chief.

"Welcome to Area-Fifty-Three-D sir. I'll take you to Colonel Archer now. Rodriguez, Pace, return to your posts."

"Thank you Captain." The Chief nodded as Rodriguez and the other airman left via the door they had arrived through.

The Chief followed the taller man through a door in the opposite wall which opened into a long illuminated corridor.

"Captain, have you detained the crew from Hill Airbase?" the Chief asked as they walked.

"Yes we did." Kowarski nodded, the scar on his thick neck twitching as he did. "Essex wasn't too happy bout it I can tell you that. Tossed him and his team in detention and Colonel Archers' verifying their identities with Hill Airbase."

"What did Colonel Addington say?" the Chief asked as he widened his strides to keep pace with Kowarski.

"Colonel Archer told me Hill confirmed the paperwork and I-Ds of Essex and his team. But the commanding officer wont' release them till you've confirmed they're not KAOS."

"Good! Good!" The Chief nodded. "Has the colonel informed the Joint Chiefs and SecDef? Are they authorizing reinforcements?"

"The colonel hasn't informed me of anything in that regard as yet." Kowarski answered. "Essex and the female airman Ellis are in his office awaiting your arrival.—"At the concern on the Chief's face, Kowarski continued. "—Don't worry, they're in handcuffs and I've got four of my men stationed outside the door."

"Let's not keep the colonel waiting then." The Chief noted and looked behind him for a moment asking. "Is this the only other way into the hangar, other than the main door?"

"That's right." Kowarski confirmed. "The doors you came through are controlled from the C&C so there's no way da override them from outside. And this passage leads right into the hangar on the north side, near the main door right in line with our primary defences. So even if KAOS gets in this way, they're just stepping right into a shooting gallery."

The Chief found out exactly what the Air Police Captain meant once they came to the door at the end of the corridor after a few tilts and turns. Stepping through it at the Northern wall of the hangar, the Chief found immediately to his right, a row of vehicular parking lots after which came the 200 foot odd wide and 50 feet high rectangle of solid titanium-steel alloy hangar doors. When the Chief turned to his left to follow the captain towards the eastern wall, the size of the hangar finally hit him as it stretched on deep into the mountain for what must be over 150 yards. He noted as well the watchful Air Police patrolling the floor in their green fatigues, flak jackets and blue berets, hands on the grips of their downward pointing M16s slung against their chest.

As they walked at an angle towards the internal building at the east wall, the Chief noted the revetments at the northern and eastern walls starting about twenty feet from the building. Gazing at the south wall, the Chief saw forklifts and tow tractors cruising in and out from a large semi-circular opening in the middle.

The vehicles moved smoothly adhering to painted lanes on the hangar floor. And upon looking up, the Chief saw what the captain meant by the hangar being a death trap for any force invading through the main doors or even the small door they came through—2 large turreted M61A1 Vulcan cannons, built into the ceiling of the hangar 3 storeys above them. As he watched, the cannon on the right for some reason, hummed as it's turret turned towards the north wall and the 6 barrelled Vulcan cannon whined as it swung downwards slightly. The Chief realized the gunner was likely testing the mechanism though he heard yells and shouts from the catwalk at the corresponding wall and saw a beefy air policeman on it shaking his fist at the Vulcan cannon while his colleague tried to calm him down. On a wider but slightly lower and shorter catwalk at the east wall below the forward angled windows, the Chief noted a stocky air policeman and his younger African American colleague guffawing and pointing at their irate comrade on the northern catwalk.

As they neared the revetments, the Chief turned his attention towards the semi-circular tunnel entrance at the southern wall.

"The fuel storage is through that?"

"Correct Chief." Kowarski nodded. "The tunnel goes on for bout' two hundred yards before reaching the storage area."

To get to the internal building, Kowarski led the Chief between the revetments. The 8 revetments, 4 at each wall faced each across the hangar over a space of about 100 odd feet. As they walked past the North wall revetments, the Chief looked over the AV-Seven-Z Harrier jet fighters parked inside them, noses pointing outwards. Two of them were now being serviced by green flight duty uniformed technicians. But all 8 aircrafts were fully armed with all their underwing and under fuselage pylons holding air-to-air AIM-7 Sparrow missiles which the Chief knew were also fuelled with the SRP-50 propellant.

The forklifts continued to whiz back and forth over the painted lanes down the centre of the space between the sets of revetments. The Chief noted that upon reaching the end of the lanes which aligned with the last revetment, the vehicles turned effortlessly into the next lane with arrows pointing back towards the hangar before zipping back out.

Clearing the revetments, they arrived at the 20 feet of space between the last barriers and the internal building. Kowarski led them through a door in the centre of the internal building's ground floor. A wide with doors on either side led about 50 yards into the building and the Chief could see an elevator right at the end of the corridor.

The Chief realised when the stepped in that the elevator car had 2 sets of doors, the second one in the back of the car enabling access to areas further inside the mountain. The conveyance brought Kowarski and the Chief up to the third floor and deposited them at the centre of the horizontal arm of a t-shaped corridor. As he stepped out, the Chief noted at the ends of the corridors to his right and left were passage ways leading forward which he imagined likely leads to the doors leading onto the north and south wall catwalks.

Following Kowarski down the vertical branch of the T-shaped corridor, the Chief realized this passage way ended about 25 feet later forming another T-shaped corridor by intersecting another horizontal passage way. Set in the wall of this passage way, directly aligned with the corridor they were now in, was a solid gray steel sliding door with 2 Air Police guarding it. The Chief realized the door must lead to the C & C and the scrutinizing focus of the 2 air policemen were locked on him despite him being escorted by their direct commander.

But they came to a stop barely 3 yards down the corridor as they arrived at a door on their left of what appeared to be glossy, varnished hardwood. As Kowarski had said, there were 4 air policemen standing outside the door in the corridor, each of them who snapped to attention and saluted as they approached. Kowarski returned the salute putting them as they were before stepping up to the door and pressing an intercom button on the wall to it's left.

"Colonel Archer. Captain Kowarski. The Chief of CONTROL is here."

" _Thank you Captain. Send him in_." came the filtered reply.

"I'll be right out here if the commander needs us." Kowarski said to the Chief as he stepped back while with a hiss, the wooden door slid open to the side and the Chief nodded to him, noting at the same time the door was thicker than it looked with an insulating layer of titanium and some form of soft padding, sandwiched between the varnished wood.

The Chief realized upon entering that the door was at a corner of the office within. Just like the hangar, the windowless room was longer than it was wide at less than 20 feet for the latter but stretching over 30 feet inwards for the former.

There were decorative potted plants at each of the 4 corners of the room. Colonel Archer's heavy desk which took up nearly 10 feet of the width was located right at the end of the space at the back wall, facing the door.

The colonel at the moment was sitting behind his desk with his swivel chair turned around to face the back wall, his head hidden by the high back of his chair as he spoke on the phone. Without turning or interrupting his phone call, Archer raised a hand to beckon the Chief over.

With quick strides, The Chief moved down the length of the office, noting the large sombre portraits of Abraham Lincoln and Generals-In-Chiefs Ulysses S. Grant and Henry W. Halleck lining the left wall while the wall on the right displayed scenes of various civil war engagements including the Battle of Antietam, Chickamauga, Third Battle of Chattanooga and various others. The last 15 or so feet of the wall on the right was occupied by situations and tactical maps. And facing these maps at the left side wall were 2 long black leather sofas as well as knee high coffee tables of black glass.

But right now, as Archer continued speaking on the phone his back to him, the Chief turned his attention to the other 2 persons in the room with them. Seated in 2 straight backed metal chairs placed against the right wall facing inwards just before Archer's desk, their hands handcuffed behind their backs, were Kerstin and Gerd.

The Chief took a deep breath as their emerald and light blue eyes locked onto him with predatory alertness and measure. Quickly removing his parka and tossing it onto the nearest sofa along with his skiing gloves, the Chief approached the 2 KAOS agents, stopping just 10 feet away facing them with Archer's desk a few feet to his left.

"Vollmar, Kerstin." The Chief greeted perfunctorily with a gaze that could melt steel.

Gerd despite the situation slouched in his seat in his tailored U.S Air Force service dress, his tie loosened and the rows of service ribbons and ribbon devices on the left breast of his uniform coat tilted haphazardly due to the rumpling of the garment. He sighed and responded in a bored voice.

"Vell ezent zis a hoot! Zer CHIEF of CONTROL himself."

"The Bundeskriminalamt will be most pleased when we turn you over to them." The Chief announced as Archer continued speaking on the phone. "If it was up to me, I'd have you tried just for the murders you've committed here in the U.S and send you directly to the gas chamber."

"Vait just a minute!" Gerd scoffed, blue eyes wide. "You've totally left out zer part vhere I talk und een exchange for all zer valuable information I give, you grant me amnesty und set me up een a nice luxury apartment vith a lifelong monthly two hundred thousand dollar stipend! I thought that's vhat your country does? Giving cold blooded, rotten, murdering scoundrels a second chance!"

"NOT this time!" The Chief declared, his fists tightening at his side. "And you have nothing to bargain with. We know everything we need to know and once S-S-Nineteen gets here, she and the rest of your gang will be arrested and sent to prison for a long time!"

"Und how ees eet you knew about owver plans, after all zer contingencies S-S-Nineteen made to deceive CONTROL UND zhat eediot Ancaster?" Kerstin spoke up, emerald light reflecting off her irises above her chiselled cheekbones as she sat in contrast to Gerd, with her back straight. As such, her operational garment of the green flight suit looked neater than Gerd's service dress as it outlined, the powerful form of her shoulders softened by the feminine outlines of her full breasts.

"We have our ways." The Chief stated proudly as he heard Archer end the conversation.

The Chief turned and walked up to the desk greeting.

"Colonel Archer. Well done! You've captured two of KAOS' most notorious agents!"

"Mostly a credit to you and CONTROL Thaddeus." Archer replied.

Hanging up the phone, Colonel Archer swivelled the chair around, stood up—and the Chief found himself face to face with a man towering over him at nearly 6 foot 3 with neatly combed white hair, well-trimmed thick white moustache, sharply pointed chin and a high forehead lined with age over limpid dark eyes.

The blue coat of his service dress highlighted the deep chest along with sturdy shoulders and arms of a once great athlete along with other achievements demonstrated by the 6 rows of ribbon devices and service ribbons that decorated the left breast of the uniform along with various badge awards.

"It's good to see you Patrick!" the Chief stated smiling genuinely for the very first time that day as he shook his friend's big hand. "I wish it was under better circumstances."

"There is no better time Thaddeus, I assure you!" Colonel Archer declared wholeheartedly. "Sometimes things work out better than we plan!"

"Absolutely right— Süßigkeiten Bär."

The Chief frowned and his blood suddenly turned cold for reasons he could not fathom at what Kerstin said and he turned away from Archer and walked towards the 2 KAOS agents.

"What did you say?" he directed at Kerstin.

The Chief's heart nearly stopped as Kerstin's eyes glittered with cold emerald brilliance and without leaning forward, simply stood and her hands moved out from behind her, the opened handcuffs dangling in her left hand.

"GUARDS!" the Chief hollered stepping back, as his hand dived inside his bluish gray tweed sports jacket and tore out his 4 inch half-lugged barrelled Colt Police Positive revolver.

Even as he levelled it, the Chief realized he was nowhere near fast enough as Kerstin jumped forward, her legs and boots moving in a blur of green and black. The Chief's right hand exploded in pain as the inside crescent of Kerstin's right boot struck home and sent his revolver flying off in a long arc down the office.

"COLONEL ARCHER!—" the Chief hollered as Kerstin continued her turn, right boot landing on the floor while her left leg swept up in a spinning heel kick which he managed to duck, feeling the blast of air as the boot heel sweep past the top of his bald head as he yelled. "—Call in the guards!"

The Chief straightened only to have Kerstin's left boot swing back in a low round kick that smashed into the side of his knee with a crunch of tendons and joints. He staggered, his right knee almost buckling completely as he saw Gerd getting to his feet and also tossing aside his unlocked handcuffs with a bored expression on his face.

Kerstin's left leg moved in a green and black blur as it jack-knifed and sent the booted instep crashing into the Chief's right hip next, dropping him onto his right knee completely. She stepped in lashing out with her right leg but the older man's resilience surprised her as he brought up his forearms to block her swinging shin before heaving forward, shoving hard.

Kerstin's right leg swung back, extending behind her with the Chief's push, causing her shoulders and breasts to pitch forward but she used the momentum to lash out with her right fist which landed across the Chief's jaw, twisting his head about. As the Chief's head whipped back to face her, Kerstin's left palm heel slammed into his right cheekbone snapping his head back at an angle, following through completely with her arm fully extended.

As the Chief's upper body veered off to the side, almost falling over, Kerstin right leg whipped up with a whistling round kick to his head. The KAOS agent was again surprised at the Chief's physical prowess as he turned back to face her with his forearms up, taking the impact of her shin on his forearms and shoulders before pushing with his left shoe on the carpet and lunged forward at her head down.

His balding cranium slammed into Kerstin's abdominal muscles causing her to grunt and stagger back a few steps. The Chief used this moment to lunge to his and his knees were a second from being completely straightened when a massive impact exploded on the back of his neck sending the world around him spinning.

The Chief slumped forward onto his chest and face on the carpeted floor. Kerstin thought he was finally unconscious as he did not move for a moment but then, the Chief groaned and slowly pulled his arms under him to try and push himself up. She stepped forward to continue but Gerd called out.

"Eezy Kerstin! S-S-Nineteen vants eem alive vemember!"

As Kerstin stopped, the Chief managed to pull his legs beneath him and struggled onto one knee. Agony pounding in his jaw and cheeks, knee, hip and base of his skull throbbing painfully, he managed to raise his face, the effort nearly blacking him out. It was then the pain at the back of his neck sent a horrifying truth surging into his mine and he blinked to make sure he was right—Kerstin was in front of him along with Gerd who had not moved at all when he was struck.

The Chief's fear was confirmed as Colonel Archer stepped past him on his right from behind and stood over him just in front of the KAOS agents. The commanding officer's limpid black eyes stared down at him with cold-blooded, emotionless conviction and purpose, a Colt M1911A1 pistol in his right hand, aimed at his face while in his other hand, he dangled something metal between his index finger and thumb tips.

The Chief realized Archer was dangling the handcuff keys and the final piece of the puzzle fell into place.

"Colonel Archer! Patrick! WHY?!" was all he could demand.

"Do not be too hard on your friend." Kerstin spoke as she stepped up to stand next to the colonel. "Ee ees not exactly imself. Zer Marquise haz made some—modifications up here."

The Chief watched in horror as Kerstin's strong fingers reached up and touched the colonel's temple at which the man did not even react.

"Vell done, Süßigkeiten Bär." Kerstin spoke to Archer who replied in a voice that was his but yet was not.

"I live, serve and die, at the pleasure of the Marquise!"

The Chief barely had the time to comprehend what was happening before Archer's gun hand tilted up and swept down towards his face and all went black.


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

Gerd stepped up to the unconscious Chief who now laid on his right side, bald head pointed in the direction of the door, a thin sliver of blood trickling down the side of his face from the left temple.

"Vhy have zer guards not rushed een vhy now?" the KAOS agent asked jabbing a thumb in the direction of the door.

"The door and this entire office is soundproofed for security reasons." Archer answered pocketing the handcuff keys.

"Zhats handy. Alzhough I don't know VHY you had to tell him zhat vee ver here een zer FIRST place?!" Gerd scowled gesturing at the unconscious Chief.

"In order to obtain the legitimate authentication passwords, I had to fabricate your orders through the Pentagon and Hill Airbase." Archer replied without emotion. "If no one scrutinizes, they would be undiscovered. But the Chief was threatening to check directly with the Pentagon which would have exposed zer Marquise's plan. It was better for me to acknowledge it, detain you and draw him here to avoid any further suspicions and prevent him from checking further."

"The…the Marquise's plans!" Gerd giggled, blond head shaking. "I'd love for S-S-Nineteen to hear zhat!"

"Vee've vasted enough time." Kerstin interjected. "S-S-Nineteen ees less zhan tventy minutes avay!—" Turning to Archer, she asked. "—Süßigkeiten Bär! Have you confiscated zer antidote from all zer base personnel as planned?"

"Yes." Archer nodded sharply turning to Kerstin. "An hour before you arrived. I told my executive Major Parish that the U.S Chemical Corps was issuing a recall of the latest batches of syrettes on account of a production flaw rendering them toxic. They are now packed in cartons in the medical bay awaiting the Marquise's orders."

"Gut Süßigkeiten Bär!" Kerstin nodded up at Archer. "Let us proceed vith zer next phase as per zer Marquise's instructions."

"I will instruct Captain Kowarski to release your men and call off the escort." Archer nodded and turned to his desk but stopped when Gerd snapped.

"Nein! Don't do zhat!"

"Eet ees easier vith less armed guards avound us!" Kerstin scowled.

"Zhat dummkopf Kovarski ees irritatingly zuspicious." Gerd stated shaking a finger in the direction of the door. "All zhose shtupik qvestions he tlied to tlick me vith vhen vee first alived. Eef zer colonel calls off zer escorts now, he vill get even MORE suspicious. Tell him to maintain zer escorts. Even better, have Kovarski take charge of owver escort personally."

"You VANT zer zuspicious commander of zer guards VITH us?!" Kerstin asked incredulously, her tawny eyebrows arching.

"Ja. Vhere vee can keep an eye on eem und out ov zer vay vhen Archer executes ees part of zer plan!"

"You vetter be sure about zhis Vollmar." Kerstin scowled jabbing an angry finger towards the door. "Zhis captain ees not a man to be trifled vith!"

"You just leave eem to me." Gerd sighed flapping a careless hand.

"So Sir, this mean we'll ALL be sent for light infantry tactics and combat training when they start calling us Security Police?" Airman First Class Cooper asked outside Colonel Archer's office, his right wrist resting on the grip of his M16 at his chest.

"Selected squadrons but I'm pushing for every one of you here at this hangar to be in on it." Captain Kowarski acknowledged as he stood among the 4 air policemen.

"Sir, they're not gonna ship us off da nam are they?"

Kowarski turned to the speaker, Airman Turner, noting the anxious look in the young man's brown eyes beneath his blue beret which fitted perfectly over his dark blond buzz cut.

"I know." Kowarski nodded. "You missed the marriage deferment by what two weeks?"

Turner nodded nervously his youthful unblemished features weighed down by worry as he added.

"It's not just that sir. Constance is into her third trimester now and…well I'd hate da be stuck tens of thousands of miles away when the baby arrives."

"I know Turner, I know." Kowarski nodded. "Isabel gave birth to our Ryan while I was guarding Da Nang Air Base in February last year." He could see the other 3 air policemen's shoulders slouch under their flak jackets as well. "And as you all know, since they signed off on the resolution after that Tonkin shit, the administrations been pouring troops over. But, you've done all you can da avoid the war zone. Good college educations, the Air Force. Just gadda take it as it comes. You've all been lucky thus far. Look at us now, safe inside a mountain!"

This brought some laughter from the men for a second as Airman First Class Brown spoke up.

"No disrespect sir and don't mean da be unpatriotic but…I heard it's bad over there! We just wanna stay alive is all. I mean, you're faster and stronger than all of us Captain and you STILL caught a bullet. Training or not, I don't like our odds there, especially with the V-C hitting airbases."

"It is bad over there." Kowarski nodded but looked around at them as he declared. "And talk like THAT, wont' help. There are worse things than guarding an airbase. Imagine those poor boys in the infantry regiments, hauling their ass everyday through jungles and swamps with V-C waitin da ambush them behind every tree, bush, shrub. Even under the water! Least around the secured perimeter of an airbase, you have a chance da see the enemy coming."

Hoping to keep their morale up, Kowarski added.

"Look. Like I say da Turner here, no promises. But I have always told the colonel—we need men stationed here who know the base and every crack in this mountain. And that's you guys.—" the captain gestured with a hand at all of them around him. "—I told our C.O, I cannot ensure the security of the base if I'm spending all my time hauling rookies back up cause they're sinking down in the snow up to their noses every step they take!—" Laughter louder now emitted from the 4 men and sniggers could be heard from the two guards down the corridor as well outside the C&C as they obviously could hear the captain talking. "—And that will always be my stand on this. The rest—is up to our superiors and the politicians. Because gentlemen, we are in the end—soldiers."

All 4 air policemen nodded at that but Kowarski knew it was likely more out of loyalty to him than the rhetoric he expounded to them. Fortunately, he was spared further attempts as the door to the office hissed aside and all 4 of their men snapped to attention, their M16s rattling against their chest as Colonel Archer stepped through.

"Atten-tion!" Kowarski snapped and saluted which Archer returned stating.

"As you…"

Before the colonel could finish his command or lower his arm, all 4 men actually snapped out of attention to high alert swinging up their M16s, safeties clicking off as Gerd and Kerstin walked out behind their commanding officer, free from handcuffs.

"Stand down! Stand down!" Colonel Archer yelled raising both his arms out to the side and behind him, Kerstin's emerald eyes flicked over the air policemen as the duckbill flash suppressors pointed at them and Gerd's icy blue eyes swept over the same targets as his feet shifted to reposition his weight while he took note as well of the two guards outside the C&C who were stepping forward, M16s partially lifted.

"Men! Stand down! I order you stand down! The situation is under control!" Archer ordered. "Captain!"

Kowarski himself had his 4 inch barrelled S&W Model 15 out in both hands, pointed low but still at Gerd. It took him a moment before he complied.

"Cooper, Brown, Turner, Varley. Stand down." Kowarski finally ordered and to his pride, the 2 airmen at the end of the corridor did not relax as he had not mentioned their names enabling them some cover if anything goes wrong. "Is everything alright commander?"

"Yes! Yes!" Colonel Archer sighed waving his hands to further relax the 4 air policemen around them who were finally lowering their M16s though Kowarski still held his Model 15 at his side.

Colonel Archer finally turned to Kowarski as he elaborated.

"Captain, I am glad da say, for now, the threat has passed.—" Colonel Archer jerked his thumb over his big shoulder at Kerstin and Gerd. "—The Pentagon has checked out their orders. And more importantly, the Chief of CONTROL has thoroughly verified and assessed their identities and he is pleased to confirm that Captain Essex, Sergeant Ellis and their two escorts, are NOT—KAOS agents."

"That's good to hear sir." Kowarski nodded finally returning his Mode 15 to it's holster.

"So!" Archer continued "I think we still have a new filtration system to install, gentlemen? Captain Kowarski, please call the brig and have Essex's men released and their equipment returned to them and...infact, would you mind overseeing the escort of Essex and his team personally?"

"It'd be my pleasure commander." Kowarski assured. "But sir. Is there any news on the new antidote shipment? With _Super Sleep_ in enemy hands, our installations are sitting ducks without it."

"Which is why we're lucky to have the Chief of CONTROL here." Archer declared jerking a thumb over his shoulder at the door. "I explained our predicament and he's on the phone with the Pentagon and Joint Chiefs right now. The Chief's bringing them up to the speed on our situation and getting them da push the Chemical Corps off their asses. We should have a new batch of syrettes delivered by twenty-one-hundred hours today."

"Very good sir." Kowarski nodded.

"So, Captain Essex, Sergeant. Please proceed with your duties." Archer turned to Gerd and Kerstin. "I understand you owe us a biological filter."

"That we do! By your leave commander." Gerd nodded with a parting salute which Archer returned.

As Archer returned to his office, Kowarski led them back towards the elevator with Gerd next to him and Kerstin following behind. The air policemen formed up in pairs in front and behind the group with Varley and Brown, in the sought-after-rear position, grinning at their objective in the form of the sinuously yet powerful flexing of Kerstin's buttocks which even her bulky green flight duty uniform could not hide.

"I'll have your men released and shown to engineering and climate control." Kowarski said as they walked.

"Much obliged Captain." Gerd nodded. "Memorable as this assignment has been, we're kinef behind schedule."

"Yeah, sorry bout the brig and all, Essex." Kowarski stated as they walked. "Can't be too careful."

"We build military installations inside mountains for a reason." Gerd replied with a careless wave. "And just so there's no hard feelings, fresher, poison free air on me in an hour!"

Kowarski chuckled in his throat with barely a twitch on his face as they reached the elevator and Turner in front, pushed the button. While they waited, Kowarski spoke.

"Somehow you don't strike me as the kind of guy who tinkers around with filtration pumps and squint at schematics and blueprints all year around. Any combat at all?"

"Only fighting I do is with a lug wrench over a stubborn bolt." Gerd pouted with a shrug.

"Hmmph." Kowarski grunted with a tilt of his beret and a quizzical eyebrow lift. "Twice today—in the hangar—when you came out of the commander's office just. The look in your eyes, way you position your feet…it's automatic threat assessment and response—assessing the positions of the men around you, alignment of weapons, lines of fire, calculation of counter-measures— something that's built in over years of conditioning which you cant' switch off. On the surface, I'd say you've been in combat your whole life."

"Well you're one da know." Gerd acknowledged with a shrug before gesturing at Kowarski. "You served in Nam with Colonel Addington right?"

"And Korea too. Force protection for Osan Air Base, Kunsan and Pusan East." Kowarski confirmed. "Then starting in January sixty-two, Da Nang then Bien Hoa over in South Nam.—" Kowarski pointed to the jagged scar on his thick neck. "—mortar shrapnel when the V-C hit Bien Hoa last November. That's when Colonel Addington took one in the knee cap. Shipped us both home after that."

"I understand bout the colonel staying stateside but I'm surprised they didn't' send you back." Gerd noted as the elevator doors slid open and to Varley and Brown's delight, they had to wait along with Kerstin for the next one.

"That was the plan." Kowarski replied as he and Gerd descended in the elevator facing the other set of doors in the back of the car. "All packed and waiting da ship just after New Years'. But Colonel Archer requested me for Area Fifty-Three-D's security."

"Lucky break huh?" Gerd noted his blond brows arching.

"Soldiers go where they're needed." Kowarski declared as they arrived at the second floor the rear facing elevator doors slid apart to reveal a long wide corridor before them in the opposing wall.

"Commander in the C&C!" Major Parish announced saluting as Colonel Archer stepped in and the heavy steel door hissed downwards shut behind him.

"As you were." Colonel Archer returned the salute.

"Is everything okay with the Hill base crew sir?" Parish asked

"Every things in order Major." Archer confirmed. "The Chief of CONTROL cleared them and our new bio-filter should be online within the hour."

"In that case sir, I'll be heading out da inspect the Harriers."

"Carry on Major."

As the steel door whooshed back down behind the Major's departing back, Archer scanned the personnel at every station in the C&C busy at their respective consoles. Casually, he walked over to the console where the air policeman was.

"Airman First Class...Maclise right?" Archer asked coming up behind the airman.

Maclise turned his ash brown buzzcut head.

"Yes sir!"

"Good! Good! Who's in command of the perimeter guards right now?"

"That would be…uh..." Maclise consulted a clipboard on a concrete pillar next to his console. "…First Lieutenant Duvet sir."

"Right. Contact Lieutenant Duvet. I need to see him and Goshawk unit inside the perimeter guard briefing room now. Inform me when they're all gathered in there."

"The ENTIRE unit sir? Everyone?" Maclise inquired, his brows locked in a frown.

"That's right."

"Umm…sir, that would leave the perimeter unguarded." Maclise stated looking back and forth from the commander to his console.

"It'll take less than five minutes and I've already spoken to your Captain on this." Archer assured. "And it won't be unguarded. This is what all these sensors, scanners, motion detectors and YOU are here for. You're not falling asleep on me are you son?"

"No sir!" Maclise shook his head vigoriously and grinning at the joshing though he squinted slightly at Coddington who was looking over from her communications console with an equally curious expression.

Turning to his console, Maclise keyed his headset.

"Olympus to Goshawk leader, come in Goshawk leader."

As the air policeman spoke, Archer looked at one of his console's CCTV monitors which reflected an image of a large circular room with walls lined with control panels with various consoles on the floor in the centre manned by green flight suited personnel. As he watched, Kowarski entered the circular room through an entrance with his air police escort team along with Gerd and Kerstin.

The circular engineering and climate control centre measuring in excess of 250 feet in diameter, was located approximately at a level in line with the 2nd storey of the internal building but far deeper into the mountain towards the eastern side. Kowarski had led Gerd and Kerstin via the only access point at the second storey of the internal building, via a wide corridor in excess of a hundred yards in length which connected to the western point of the circular chamber where they entered. Gauges of every size measuring pressure, airflow, temperature etc. lined most of the control panels along the walls. 2 semi-circular consoles occupied the centre of the floor facing outwards towards the circular walls in the north and south directions manned by 3 airmen each while more worked at the wall controls.

As the entered, Kerstin's emerald eyes threw back the ceiling lights as she observed the catwalk along the entire circumference of the chamber just 15 feet above the floor of the chamber manned by 6 air policemen standing in almost every direction. Their raptor intense eyes watched every movement in the room though she could see their attention diverted to her for just a second or so before returning to their constant vigilance. Facing the western entrance at the eastern point of the circular chamber was a wide opening which revealed a large chamber beyond with large pipes and ventilation ducts reaching from wall to wall and floor to ceiling.

Gerd noted that Klehr and Wilson were already there, their weapons returned to them. Both stood near the entrance to the chamber bent over 3 large aluminium crates resting on pallet jacks. A stocky man in his 50ties, heavy belly straining the front of his flight duty uniform and bald pate surrounded by a fringe of brown hair, watched over them. Gerd noted the impressive insignia on the man's flight suit sleeves of 2 chevrons atop 3 middle stripes which met the star and 3 rockers on the bottom.

He was scrutinizing the equipment within the 3 crates which Klehr and Wilson were unpacking with some unhappiness.

"Do you two air cops know what you're even handling?!" the senior airman gruffed at them. "That's a mobile compressor! If you drop it, it'll blow up in our faces! Put that back down and wait for the engineers da get here!"

Wilson straightened, his stone hard cheekbones and smooth features as lifeless as a statue as his glittering black eyes locked on the airman and his deep gravelly voice responded.

"Just following orders. Captain Essex wants these unpacked soon as possible."

"Here they are now." Klehr gestured towards the west side of the chamber.

The senior personnel turned in that direction to see the new arrivals.

"Sorry Chief!" Kowarski grinned. "Don't mean da mess up your blood pressure. Hadda make sure their security clearances check out."

"My blood pressure's the least of our problems if these guys don't stabilize the mixture right in those main lines." The Chief Master Sergeant with the last name "COGHILL" on his name tape, growled gesturing at the chamber beyond. "Any variance over fifty p-s-i and every vent and pipe in this installation ruptures. Less than twenty minutes after, we're all breathing the sweat-soaked socks you left under your bunk five months before, then ten minutes later the fun really starts with hypercapnia!"

"I assure you Chief Coghill by the time we're done, the air in this installation will be safer, fresher and greener then the Glen of Aherlow on an autumn morning." Gerd nodded as the short Coghill stalked over to them past the central consoles.

Narrowing a bulging eye at Gerd, Coghill remarked.

"You're not poking fun at my Irish roots now are you sir?"

"I have great respect for those who don't take sides." Gerd replied and as Coghill squinted at his words, the KAOS agent gestured to his left. "Staff Sergeant Ellis will take charge of the sensor calibrations in here while I begin in the conduit chamber."

Kerstin nodded stiffly as Coghill regarded her with unbridled hostility though she saw he could not stop the dilation of his brown irises as he tried to stare her down, knowing of course they were focused on her chest.

Leaving Coghill momentarily distracted, Gerd was already striding towards Wilson and Klehr, unbuttoning his service jacket as he called out over his shoulder.

"Let's get started! Which of you guys are joining me?"

"Cooper and Turner, with me." Kowarski stated following Gerd and to the delight of the other 2 members of the escort team he added. "Varley, Brown. Stay with the staff sergeant."

"Yes SIR!" Varley and Brown chorused unintentionally and with too much enthusiasm before exchanging glances and Airman Varley jabbed a finger at Brown's insignia and his one level of rank superiority over him and the latter repeated in a more reserve tone. "I mean, yes sir."

Klehr handed over two large metallic attache cases from their crates to Gerd as he approached them. As he grabbed their handles and walked into the conduit chamber without missing a beat, Kowarski followed with Cooper and Turner, the Air Police Captain calling over his shoulder as he did.

"Make sure you two keep your eyes on her HANDS as well till they're on their way out that hangar door!"

"Yes sir." Both Varley and Brown answered with sagging faces as they followed Kerstin towards Wilson who held out another metallic attache case for her.

A female airman in her early forties with caramel brown hair held in a neat regulation bun with Technical Sergeant insignias on her sleeves, standing behind one of the airmen seated at the south facing semi-circular console with a clipboard, turned to her immediate superior. Her name tape read "Brooking" and the lines around her cheek bones and smoothly tapering jaws and chin stretched elegantly as she asked with a knowing smirk.

"Chief? I take it you wanna stay here with the—Staff Sergeant?"

"Thank you." Kerstin said as she took the case and turned around asking. "Chief Master Sergeant, where's the primary sensor station?"

And Coghill right behind her with the Varley and Brown all snapped their eyes up to her face as she turned. After a second, Coghill managed to arrange a scowl over his face as he gestured to the north facing console.

"That one." The Chief Master Sergeant pointed with a growl that could not shrink his pupils which followed Kerstin as she walked past him to where he pointed before he turned again towards the Technical Sergeant. "Did you say something Brooking?"

"Would you like me to assist Captain Essex, Chief?" Brooking asked with the slightest eye roll unnoticed by all except the young Airman First class she was standing behind who stifled a giggle with his shoulders wobbling.

"Yes! Yes! Good thinking Sergeant Brooking!" Coghill nodded as along with Varley and Brown, they watched Kerstin asked the centre airmen at the north facing curved console to vacate his station temporarily. "I…I'd best stay in here and…and supervise the…the…yes—supervise!"

"Yes Chief." Brooking nodded and her lopsided grin maintained as she turned to leave and gave the giggling airman a parting slap on the shoulder with her clipboard.

In the C&C, Maclise spoke into his headset's microphone while Archer stood beside him leaning forward with one hand on the edge of the console top.

"Roger Goshawk leader. I'll inform the commander now."

Turning in his seat and looking up at his commander, Maclise reported.

"Colonel Archer. Lieutenant Duvet and the entire Goshawk unit are inside the briefing room now awaiting your orders sir."

"Thank you airman. I'm headed down to them now." Archer said and as he walked towards the door spoke towards the right side wall. "Staff Sergeant Higgs. The C&C is yours till Major Parish returns from his inspection."

"Yes sir!"

Both of Gerd's attache cases laid open side by side on the floor of the conduit room pointing towards the north wall where he had placed them at a spot behind 2 large silver ventilation ducts, each one measuring 2 feet square. The ducts came down from the ceiling side by side and then turned at a right angle a few inches from the floor to continue horizontally, one above the other for another 20 yards or so before they connected into the wall.

As Gerd crouched over them, Cooper and Turner behind him and off to the sides stared with puzzlement at the rows and rows of equipment inside them some with multi-coloured cables trailing from the. Kowarski stood slightly beyond the two airmen further down in the direction of the south wall where the ducts connected horizontally into it.

"Here we go." Gerd said standing up with a 10 inch by 4 inch device with gauges and various switches on it, trailing some wires but promptly bumped into Cooper. "Whoops! Sorry airman. Told you guys it'd get crowded in here."

"What's that for?" Kowarski asked.

As Gerd attached the device to the upper horizontal duct at about the 10 yard mark, he peered over it towards the chamber entrance which was right in line with him at this position, to see what was happening in the main engineering centre as he answered.

"This is a tactile sensitive, vacuum gauge which will enable us to confirm the air pressure and flow rate inside these primary ducts so we can match the bio-filter's settings to it."

Kowarski's steel hard gray eyes flicked over to Brooking who stood to Gerd's right, her back towards the right angled turn of the 2 ducts. The Technical Sergeant, standing with her hands in front of her holding the clipboard, gazed at the device Gerd was adjusting for a second or two before her brown eyes met Kowarski's and she nodded her confirmation.

As he adjusted the device, Gerd saw the 2 other air policemen of the escort team standing behind the north facing semi-circular console along with the Chief Master Sergeant and the young light brown haired airman who Kerstin had relieved at that console.

The 4 of them were looking down at Kerstin who was at the moment, seated on the floor facing them, underneath the console while another 2 airmen remained at their station on either side of her at the extreme ends of the console's arc. Kerstin was looking up at the underside of the terminal where she had opened an access panel and several wires were now hanging down before her sharp porcelain cheeks and sleek jawline as her hands buried up inside the circuitry made various adjustments.

Her legs were stretched outwards towards her observers, knees bent and pointed upwards, her boot heels dug in the ground to steady herself or at least that was only one of the reasons for it also kept the powerful slabs of her thighs apart sufficiently to maintain the uninterrupted attention of Brown, Varley, Coghill and the standing technician. This was despite the bulkiness of her flight suit which basically diffused the shape of her legs and the juncture.

Kerstin pulled down a red and blue cable from the circuitry and rummaged among the instruments in her opened metal attache case on the floor next to her.

"Few more minutes and I'll be done here Chief!" she called out and unseen by the onlookers, she attached a small cigarette pack sized black box with a short antenna to the circuitry board amongst the wires.

Coghill and the 3 men around him breathed in deeply as their gaze remained locked on Kerstin's parted, green clad thighs.

"Take aaaall the time you need staff sergeant." Coghill replied finally smiling away.

"If any of you gentlemen happen to be from the South—" Kerstin continued as she reconnected two other wires. "—I apologise for my momentarily un-lady like posture."

"Speaking for both sides—" Coghill replied smirking. "—you have our pardon."

"Captain Essex." Brooking asked stepping forward past Cooper. "What's the sensitivity on your gauge?"

"This baby'll flip right down da point two hundred hectopascals." Gerd answered as he rotated a small knob on the device. "Well within range of this installations ventilation settings."

"Sir due to our altitude and the confines of the mountain we've had to maintain a balance within the external and internal barometric fluctuations, recalibrated every hour." Brookings stated. "Problem is the specs on the KR-Seven-Zero-A doesn't indicate any form of variable pressure alerts. Did logistics command put in our recommendations to incorporate that feature?"

"I'm afraid I was just cleared for the schematics yesterday evening and I only had a glance at them before rushing over." Gerd replied pressing two buttons and causing the gauges on the device to leap to life.

Consciousness along with pain from a headache swirled into the Chief's brain. Keeping his eyes closed, he turned his bowed head left and right to flex his neck which caused the pain to momentarily flare but he bore with it. Finally, the pounding faded to a persistent kick which pretty much was how he felt whenever Max was talking. With business as usual in his head, the Chief lifted his face slowly, opening his eyes.

When his vision cleared, he realised he was still in the office, looking down the length of it towards the door far away. Looking about, he realized he was sitting on the floor with his back against the front of Archer's massive desk and his hands were secured behind him. He could feel handcuffs cutting into his wrist and couldn't move his arms at all, realizing he was cuffed around the front right leg of the desk which he knew would be impossible for him to move.

The Chief looked about him, seeing no one as he moved his numb legs and stretched them to get himself ready for any chance of escape though his knee and hip clicked slightly from the blows they had taken.

The door to the office whooshed open and the Chief looked up quickly but his hopes for any form of rescue was dashed as Colonel Archer strode in.

"Colonel. Colonel! Patrick!" The Chief barked as the commanding officer stomped down the length of the office towards him. "Patrick, for god sakes! Snap out of it! I know you're IN there! Whatever it is KAOS has done to you, I know you can BEAT it!"

"We have left you ungagged because this office is sound proof." Archer replied simply reaching inside his uniform coat to draw out his Colt 1911A1 again. "But the Marquise's servants have granted me the leeway to do so or render you unconscious again at my discretion should you endanger our mission or annoy me. So keep—QUIET!"

The Chief sighed, shaking his head in dismay, ignoring the throbbing pain as the colonel lifted his left fist. Only now the Chief realised he had on a heavy silver ring with a wide thick rectangular bezel mounted with a flat piece of gold, which he had never seen the colonel wear before. Archer extended a thumb from the grip of his pistol and flicked at the edge of the bezel, flipping open the gold piece on it to reveal a tiny hidden microphone inside.

"Jäger Scout Four to Jäger Scout Leader. Jäger Scout Four to Jäger Scout Leader, come in." Archer spoke into the ring.

Inside the engineering chamber, through tiny IEMs hidden inside the ear canals of Gerd, Kerstin, Klehr and Wilson, Archer's voice filtered over.

" _..leader._ _Jäger Scout Four to Jäger Scout Leader, come in._ _"_

Gerd, still adjusting the device he attached to the ventilation duct, tapped the gauge experimentally 3 times with his finger as though to test it. But behind the glass, a microphone built into the device picked up the sound.

 _Clack! Clack! Clack!_

The Chief frowned at the sound coming over the ring communicator Archer used but he realised it must be some form of signal as Archer quickly answered the opened bezel of the ring.

"Jäger Scout Four to Jäger Scout Leader. Wind chime is in place. I repeat. Wind..."

"… _chime is in place. Awaiting your action._ "

Klehr and Wilson looked up as Archer's words filtered through their hidden IEMs, to see the air policemen stationed on the catwalk above looking down but no longer at them. Their eagle eyed stares were directed towards the same target which the Chief Master Sergeant, Varley, Brown and the other airman were gaping at. Turning surreptitiously, the KAOS agents stepped up to the opened crates on the pallet jacks with Wilson, face as unmoving as a statue, reaching into his flak jacket with his right hand and coming out slowly with a black leather glove. As he slowly eased his right hand into it, the light in the room revealed a bluish tinge to the black leather as his fingers flexed while Klehr opened a long metal box among the tools in the carton to reveal a 15 inch long, parkerized black metal tube.

"Chief. The sensors are recalibrated." Kerstin announced under the console where she was now turned around and sitting back on her heels, her back to them with her opened attache case on the floor in front of her.

"If you wanna recheck it…it…it's okay by us." Coghill shrugged as he and his 3 immediate companions stared on.

For if her flight suit's bulk had suffused her form, it was no longer able to now for with Kerstin sitting on her boot heels and bent forward, the garment was stretched tight over her powerful hips displaying the twin spheres of her sculpted buttocks and panty line over them. And to top off the gawk factor for all the staring personnel, the fabric of the flight suit also pulled up against the juncture of her buttocks, revealing the titillating line of her intergluteal cleft.

"Come on!" Gerd stated annoyed twisting a knob on the device.

"Something wrong?" Kowarski asked, his right hand next to his holstered S&W Model 15's curved grip twitching instinctively.

"The readings on the gauges are way off." Gerd grimaced as he flipped a toggle switch and an indicator light above it blinked on. "I'll need da recalibrate it first."

Inside the C&C, underneath Maclise's console, a cigarette sized black box with a short antenna hummed quietly to life with a blue indicator light on it's top facing inwards away from anyone's line of sight lighting up and the same occurred with the one Kerstin planted inside the terminal she was under.

"What the?" Maclise frowned looking up as the picture on every CCTV monitor mounted in the wall above his console was replaced by white hash and static. "Major! We've lost visual on all internal cameras."

"That can't be." Parish grumbled walking over. "Is the circuitry burned out again?"

Inside the conduit chamber, Gerd rummaged through his tools in his case with Cooper standing in front of him and Brooking just behind the air policeman's shoulder while Turner stood behind Gerd, tilting left and right curiously to see what the captain was looking for in the case.

"Where the heck is that…I KNOW I packed that stupid calibrator just this morning!" Gerd grumbled as he pushed and tossed tools aside from his case.

Brooking glanced from Gerd to the device on the ventilation shaft, brown eyes narrowing on the flicking gauges and she turned to Kowarski, widening her eyes in alarm and shaking her head quickly as she backed away.

Kowarski standing a few feet behind Turner, augmented by Brooking's confirmation finally acted on his instinct that had the blood flowing double time in his temples since the colonel had cleared Essex and his team. Placing his hand to the grip of his Model 15 revolver he walked quickly up behind Turner.

"Captain Essex. Please step back from the case!"

"Thank GOD! I was down da my last advanced engineering babble!" Gerd announced rising and though Cooper and Brooking in front of him both saw it, neither could react on time.

Before his knees even straightened, Gerd's right hand came clear of the tools in his case with the Walther P1, it's barrel half encapsulated by a polished 6 inch suppressor and with a tilt of his wrist, he squeezed the trigger.

The suppressor was so efficient that all that was heard was the metallic clacking of the slide as it slammed back and forth over the receiver with each shot but the mundane sound was accompanied by the terrifying contrast of Cooper's violent spasms as the 9mm parabellum rounds struck his chest and twin welters of blood exploded out the back of his flak jacket on either side of his spine.

Before Cooper even started falling, Gerd was already whipping around clockwise, triggering off a third shot that rocketed through Brooking's throat and exploded out the back of her neck in a shower of blood, bone and spinal fluid causing the Technical Sergeant's head to snap forward and then back like a broken marionette.

Before Brooking and Cooper even struck the floor, Gerd was already facing Turner and he heard Kowarski hollered.

"Turner! Shoot him!"

Turner who was still blinking away the image of his friend and Brooking being shot finally swung his M16 up but Gerd as part of his clockwise spin was already grabbing the handguard of the assault rifle, pushing the barrel off to the side and shoving the weapon horizontally back towards it's owner. The carrying handle of the M16 slammed into Turner's throat and his eyes popped as Cooper and Brooking finally struck the floor with lifeless eyes staring in different directions.

"Turner! Get out of the way!" Kowarski yelled his Model 15 out but he did not have a clear shot and he reached out to pull Turner out of the way.

Gerd ran forward keeping the carrying handle of the M16 wedged against Turner's windpipe, shoving the Airman backwards. The air policeman backpedalled and his back slammed full force into a running Kowarski's chest turning the air police captain's gun hand while the back of his head unwittingly struck his own superior's nose. Kowarski's Model 15 clattered to the floor as his head snapped back from the accidental head butt, blood spurting in twin streams from his nose.

Mesmerized by Kerstin's green clad posterior, panty line and intergluteal outline, Coghill, Brown, Varley and the air police on the catwalk all heard Kowarski's yell but just took a second too late to respond. Kerstin sitting on her heels, bent forward with flight suit riding upper into her tailbone between her buttocks, lifted out her suppressor attached Browning Hi-Power from under the tools in her case and without turning, pointed it backwards under her left arm, past her ribcage and triggered away sending the slide clacking repeatedly.

Coghill's dilated eyes popped even wider as his body jerked along with Brown, Varley and the technician as bullets smashed through their chest and ribs, exploding out in crimson fountains.

The air police on the catwalk finally swung up their M16s and levelled them over the railing down at Kerstin only to have both Klehr and Wilson whip around from where they were standing at the open cartons, the former with his M3A1's barrel, now half covered with the 15 inch suppressor.

But it was Wilson who fired first as his right arm hooked with the speed of a striking rattle snake, his right black leather gloved hand snatching his Smith & Wesson Model 15 from his holster to reveal that it was not a standard U.S Air Force issue with a 4 inch barrel but rather a snub nose with the remaining 2 inches made up by a suppressor.

He whipped up the weapon and following the first whispered shot that struck an air police on the catwalk at the south side of the catwalk, he held down the trigger and his left hand slammed down again and again on the hammer of the revolver in blur of motion, firing shot after shot in that manner and swinging the whispering suppressor clockwise.

The 2nd and third air policemen on the south side of the catwalk convulsed and twisted as .38 special rounds smashed their chests and the wall behind them were decorated in red splotches. Klehr's suppressed M3A1 produced only the sound of it's rattling bolt like the sound of a typewriter's keys being strucky and one of the air police on the northern curve of the catwalk shook as multiple exit wounds exploded out the back of his flak jacket. Before Klehr could swing the weapon to the other 2 air police, Wilson was already facing in that direction, his left hand continually slamming down on the hammer of his Model 15 sending the remaining 2 air police flying back as a bullet drilled each of their chests, rupturing their hearts before exploding out their backs.

Gerd twisted Turner's M16, turning the Airman counter-clockwise and shoved him back against a thick vertical pipe behind him keeping him pinned with the carrying handle still pressed to his windpipe and his right arm bent and trapped against the stock of his own weapon. As he shoved the muzzle of the P1's suppressor against the airman's solar plexus, Kowarski, blood dribbling from his nostrils and with Turner out of the way, lunged in with lightning speed at Gerd's elbow and gun wrist. His fingers were inches from his target when Gerd, keeping Turner pinned with the M16 whipped his right arm sideways to swipe the captain's hand aside before returning with an upward swinging elbow.

Kowarski's head snapped backwards as Gerd's right elbow exploded upwards under his chin. As the captain staggered back, Gerd returned his P1 suppressor muzzle to Turner's chest and tilting sideways on his left foot, lashed out sideways with his right leg. Gerd's right shoe slammed home just above Kowarski's crotch without his leg fully extending and the KAOS agent could feel something crunch against the heel of his service shoe.

Kowarski folded over like a piece of bent cardboard, arms stretched out front with the force of the impact and dropped first onto the seat of his pants on the floor toppling sideways on his right, hands pressed to his lower abdominal area.

Outside in the chamber, Kerstin was on her boots, Hi-Power slide clacking sending two 9mm rounds into the airman at the end of her console before turning her weapon on the 4 airman at the control panels at the North side and continued firing. As they convulsed with bullets perforating their bodies and struck the panels behind setting off explosions of sparks, the remaining airman at her console to her right made a desperate charge at her.

Kerstin turned her right leg sweeping up across in a clockwise arc sending the outside crescent of her boot smashing across the charging airman's jaw, twisting his head to his left as he fell. She continued her turn as her leg came down to face the southern arc of the chamber in time to see the 3 airmen manning the other semi-circular console jerk spasmodically under a hail of bullets, this time from Wilson who was now firing with his own suppressed M3A1 having emptied his Model 15. Klehr was meanwhile walking calmly towards the southern arc of the chamber, his suppressed M3A1 whining in unison with Wilson's cutting apart the 5 airmen who were manning the control panels there and explosions ripped out through the control panels as the bullets continued their journey upon exiting their human targets.

Wilson stepped through the space between the ends of the semi-circular consoles, suppressed M3A1 in his gloved right hand and aimed it at the unconscious airman on the floor.

"Nein. Leave eem." Kerstin said walking past him. "Zer gas vill put him to sleep soon enough."

Spasms of pain wrecked through Kowarski as he struggled to sit up, agony constricting him from the waist down. He managed only to raise his head sideways off the ground to see Turner pinned helpless against the pipe by his own weapon. Essex while holding the M16 against Turner's throat and his suppressed P1 to the Airman's chest yelled over his shoulder into the main chamber, almost casually.

"Hol die Kanister jetzt raus! Schnell!"

"C…c…Captain!" Turner gasped his own weapon mashing his throat, his terrified eyes swivelled to the side at his superior on the ground. "Cap..uugghh…p…please! Heluugghh! Help me…arrggh.."

Kowarski growled in rage trying to rise but agony exploded all through his abdomen and shooting down to his knees, collapsing him again.

"Die Hauptkanäle sind hier drin!" Gerd yelled over his shoulder.

"Please… _ack_! P..please don't kill me!" Turner begged, eyes bulging, lips twisted as he tried to speak with his windpipe wedged. "My…my wife…"

"Ja, Ja, Ja." Gerd said still looking over his shoulder as he squeezed the trigger and the P1's slide clacked twice.

Kowarski roared in rage as he saw Turner jerk, his head tossing back and the light go out of his eyes. Gerd finally released him, turning around to look at his team's progress as the airman slid slowly down to the floor, the pressure of the back of his head against the pipe behind him raking up his beret to slide the headgear and flash down over his forehead and eyes as his lifeless weight sank him to the floor in a disorganized heap.

As Kerstin entered the conduit room followed by Klehr and Wilson, each pushing a pallet jack with their large aluminium crates on it, Kowarski's eyes burned into Gerd even as he kept convulsing with explosions of pain from his hip downwards. Fighting the pain, he dragged an elbow under him and forced himself up on it, spasming with agony as he did and the captain realised, his pubic bone must be crushed.

Gerd turned towards him as Kowardski's trembling, growl fought through his agony.

"H...How?! The…the Chief!…Who…WHO are you?! STASI?!"

"Bundeswehr, Heer to be exact. FOR-merly thank Gott!" Gerd scoffed rolling his eyes to the dark ceiling as Kerstin rounded the vertical sections of the ducts they were at with Klehr and Wilson following with the equipment.

The effort to speak triggered blasts of pain from his groin which convulsed Kowarski as he tried to keep himself on his elbow on the floor while he spat.

"Y…You're WEST German!"

Gerd pouted nonchalantly as he shrugged and flopped his suppressed Walther P1 left and right.

"East, Vest! Vhats zer difference? All zhat matters een zis vorld, ees who pays more zhan both of zhem—PUT—togezher."

Saliva turned crimson by the blood from his nose, Kowarski spat out at Gerd causing another wave of agonized convulsions to hit him as he laid on his hip and elbow.

"You're a DIS-GRACE!"

"You know—" Gerd frowned gazing at the ceiling as he pondered. "—zhat ees ex-XACTLY vhat zhat snooty Feldjäger oberleutnant said vhen he came vith ees men to avest me, just before I did zhis."

Gerd punctuated his sentence by lifting his suppressed Walther P1 without even looking and the slide clacked twice back and forth on the receiver and Kowarski convulsed again, his head snapping back as the 9mm Parabellum rounds drilled through his chest, exploding out the back of his flak jacket in jets of blood on either side of his spine. The force of the impact threw his upper body back so he completed his collapse onto his back with his body straight, his boots towards the KAOS agents.

Turning around, Gerd saw that Wilson and Klehr were tossing the for-show equipment from their crates aside, sending them clattering all over the floor.

"Vhat EES EET vith you Vilson?!" Klehr lambasted his colleague as he lifted a green coloured 4 foot long metal canister from inside the crate. "U gave zhose gards more chances to SHOOT us! Vhy do you ALVAYS have to draw your shtupid pistol like zhat?! Zer machine gun ees FASTER!"

Lifting out 2 canisters form his crate, one in each hand, Wilson turned his back on the unhappy Klehr without any expression on his stone hard features as his answer floated back over his shoulder like rocks rumbling down a mountain in a landslide.

"Still killed faster and more than you."

"Kerstin! Überlass das ihnen. Lass uns gehen!" Gerd ordered as he walked past Kerstin who had a coil of hoses around her shoulder and lifting out another canister from her crate.

As Kerstin placed the canister down on the floor and tossed the hose to Klehr, Wilson began cutting a hole in the top ventilation duct with the Variable High-Intensity Beam Projector. As the flare of the laser cast a crimson glow over his rock hard features, he rumbled after Gerd without looking up from his work.

"Vollmar. You missed a spot."

Gerd turned at the junction of the ducts where they turned at a right angle from the ceiling to travel towards the wall, just in time to hear, above the whine of Wilson's laser, soft grunting and defiant growls. About 15 feet away, he saw Kowarski, surprisingly still alive, struggling to sit up, his head lifted up almost a foot from the floor.

"Oh gut. I hate to vaste bullets." Gerd stated as he raised his P1 again and a thin whisp of smoke issued from the suppressor as the weapon's slide clacked again, locking back this time with the last round expended.

Kowarski's right eye detonated in a burst of fluids and blood and the bullet exited through the back of his head in a fountain of crimson and brain fluids. The captain's head struck the floor with a wet slap as Gerd turned to leave with Kerstin scowling as she stooped to snatch up Brooking's fallen clipboard before following her colleague.

"ZHAT vas a vaste of bullets!"

Wilson began cutting a 4th hole in the top duct evenly spaced with the others while Klehr shoved the nozzle of a hole into the first one, the precision rubber washer at the nozzle's base achieving an instant seal.

Kerstin and Gerd ran down the corridor that connected the engineering and climate control centre to the elevator, the former releasing the magazine from her Browning Hi-Power while Gerd thumbed the magazine release cache at the bottom of the P1's grip and dragged out the clip before dropping it to clatter on the smooth white tiled floor along with Kerstin's.

"Gerd, just LET zer gas do it's verk!" Kerstin declared as she locked home a new magazine in her Browning Hi-Power while gripping Brooking's clipboard under her left arm. "You KNOW how S-S-Nineteen gets about unnecessary casualties!"

"Vhat zhat little Mädchen doesn't undershtand ees zhat zees are military personnel—" Gerd declared as he slapped home a new magazine into his P1 and thumbed the lever to release the slide. "—vith reactions some vhat faster zhen zer average fat lazy civilian security guard. Vee simply cannot allow her sentimentality to get een zer vay of owver objective. "

"Und zhis haz nuzzing to do vith your luv for killing?" Kerstin's luscious lips stretched as she grimaced while they arrived at the elevator and Gerd punched the button.

"Vell, vun ov zer key to true happiness EEZ enjoying vun's verk." Gerd squinted one eye and tilted his head as he shrugged dramatically.

Maclise flicked a row of switches while adjusting a knob as he scowled at the unresponsive static filled CCTV monitors.

"Switch to the alternative frequencies and reset the primaries!" Parish ordered standing over Maclise and gesturing at the controls.

"I HAVE sir!" Maclise replied through gritted teeth flicking another 4 switches as sweat began to gleam on his forehead and scalp under his buzz cut.

"Then WHY are the screens not coming back on airman?!"

"I don't know sir! Power output, visual and audio inputs are all working fine!" Maclise declared.

Inside the elevator, Kerstin pulled a syrette from a pocket on her flight suit, pulled the hood off with her teeth and jabbed herself in her left arm. Gerd did the same with a syrette of his own with just as little reaction while he spoke into his own communications ring with bezel opened, on his raised left fist.

"Jäger Scout Leedar to Jäger Scout two und three. Veport."

Back in the conduit chamber, Klehr was crouched on the floor, fitting an 8th nozzle into the lower duct. A total of 16 canisters were lined up on the floor before the 2 primary ducts with a hose leading from each of them. Each duct had 8 holes now drilled into them, evenly spaced and 8 canisters were connected via their hose and nozzles to each duct.

Klehr stood up and gave a thumbs up to Wilson back out among the bodies in the engineering chamber. Standing at the south facing console with the dead airmen on the floor around him, Wilson rumbled a reply into his own ring communicator.

"Jäger Scout three. Fog-Storm in place. Permission to proceed with next phase."

" _Proceed._ _"_

Wilson's leather gloved right hand flicked a row of coloured plastic switches on the console before taking hold of a 4 inch diameter metal control knob with markings on the console surrounding it's circumference and turned it counter clockwise.

Maclise in the C&C flipped open a panel on his console revealing tangles of multi-coloured cables and plunged his fingers in looking through them.

"The input wire first. The input first!" Parish pointed feverishly.

"Yes sir! I'm looking!" Maclise gritted, sweat beginning to pour down his face.

Coddington's hazel eyes narrowed as she tilted left and right in her chair at her console trying to look past Parish's back at the static filled monitors.

"Major!" she finally called out. "It..It's not a glitch! The static pattern on the screen is indicative of some form of interference!"

"That's absurd airman!" Parish snorted over his shoulder at her. "No jamming signal could get through our signal shields."

"It won't have to if the interference is coming from inside the base." Coddington insisted. "Sir the pattern…Appleby!"

Appleby blinked with his hands on the control columns of the Vulcan cannons as Coddington called him and he looked at her before snapping his head back over to Maclise's station.

"Uuuhhh…Major. She's right." Appleby pointed "The pattern is reflecting a variable megahertz frequency. We're...somehow we're being jammed! Coddington, can you scan…"

"Stand down airman!" Parish snapped without turning and Appleby grimaced and tossed his hands helplessly at Coddington who clenched her fists on the console.

The 2 air policemen outside the C&C's door looked up at the low ring from the elevator at the end of the long corridor facing them. The doors parted and Captain Essex walked out, hands behind his back with the emerald eyed Staff Sergeant Ellis next to him holding a clipboard up before her and her right hand behind it as she spoke to her superior.

They could just hear what they were saying as they walked down the corridor past the colonel's office.

"Sir, I'm afraid this variance in their ventilation system's air flow will delay the installation of the bio filter." The staff sergeant explained to the captain who clucked his tongue, shaking his head.

"I KNEW we should'ev had a test run before we installed it. We'll just have to get the C&C da contact Hill and see what logistics command proposes. Can you make the modifications with the Chief and the staff sergeant…uhh…"

"Brooking sir." Ellis finished for him as she kept looking back and forth on her clipboard. "It'll take some time…"

With Essex and Ellis halfway down the corridor, both air policemen straightened though not just because of the superior officer but with hopes that the staff sergeant would lower her clipboard as she approached.

Staff Sergeant Higgs standing at the consoles along the right side wall of the C&C looked up as he heard a noise while Parish kept barking orders.

"Cahn, Soule. Did you hear that?" he asked as Coddington called out again from her console.

"Major! Sir! Please! Just let me scan the frequencies inside the C and C!"

"You will act only on my orders airman!" Parish growled jabbing a finger towards her as he faced Maclise's console with the air policeman still feverishly working on the wiring.

Cahn looked up from his console, squinting.

"Did engineering just turned up the air flow?"

"Sergeant!" the light blonde airman with the name tape "SOULE" on her flight suit, seated next to Cahn called out as she pointed at her console readings. "They did! The airflow's been turned up to maximum, way above established protocols for current external temperatures. Internal temp will hit

Zero in ten minutes!"

Parish whirled around to face the right side wall with a look of confusion on his features.

"Check the air-flow regulators on all internal vents to make sure they're not malfunctioning…airman WHAT are you doing?! Get BACK to your station!"

Appleby was also swivelled around in his chair now as Coddington had dashed over to Maclise's console and was now crouched on the floor next to the air policeman and reaching underneath the terminal.

"I order you to get BACK to your POST airman!" Parish hollered pointing furiously back at Coddington's terminal.

"Coddington!" Maclise exclaimed pushing his seat back and looking down at her. "Coddington! Michelle! For godsakes listen to the…"

He was cut off as Coddington's arm came back out from under the terminal and both Maclise and Parish stared at the cigarette pack sized black box with a short antenna on top and a blue indicator light.

"What is…Where did you get that, airman?! How did you…" Parish exclaimed

"Colonel Archer was leaning at this spot earlier on Major!" Coddington exclaimed standing up and fiddling with the device.

"You mind your words now airman!" Parish scowled coldly. "You are speaking about our commanding offi…"

"Major, it's a transceiver!" Appleby yelled pointing. "It HAS to be the jammer!"

"Shut it off airman!" Parish gesticulated with both hands.

"I can't sir! There aren't any switches on it!" Coddington exclaimed turning the device over and feeling it's surfaces.

"It has to be remotely controlled!" Appleby declared pointing. "Just…just smash it!"

"Just wait a second!" Parish declared, his eyes wide with indecision.

Maclise leaped to his feet grabbing the device from Coddington, tossed it on the floor and stamped on it with his boot practically disintegrating it.

"Monitors are back up!" Cahn pointed.

Everyone's eyes turned to the monitor screens and Coddingtons' hand went to her lips stifling a shout as they saw the monitor reflecting the view of the engineering and climate and control chamber and the blood stained green flight suited bodies on the floor, the catwalks or slumped over the consoles.

At the same time, a voice crackled over the shortwave in Maclise's console.

"… _Goshawk Leader to Olympus! I repeat Goshawk leader to Olympus! Goshawk unit is still in the nest awaiting Zeus for the briefing. Please update!"_

Parish's eyes bulged even wider at this additional revelation while still staring at the image of the engineering chamber and the dead bodies and he blurted out.

"WHAT the HELL is Duvet and the entire perimeter guard doing in-SIDE?!"

"The colonel ordered them there sir! He said he wanted…" Maclise cut off his explanation as he yelled out pointing at the monitor that reflected a view of the two air police stationed outside. "Sir! Outside the door!"

Outside the door of the C&C, a clacking sound of a racking pistol slide is heard as a hole blew out of the back of Kerstin's raised clipboard and the bullet drilled the chest of the air police on the right of the door, slamming him back into the wall. Before the second airman could react, Kerstin dropped the clipboard revealing her hidden Browning Hi-Power with the suppressor over it's muzzle and the slide clacked again. As the second airman slid to the floor leaving a blood trail on the wall as Gerd spoke into his ring again while reaching for a push button panel next to the door.

"Jäger Scout Leedar to Jäger Scout two und three. Velease Fog-Storm now."

"Jawohl Jäger Scout Leedar!" Klehr answered via his own ring communicator from where he crouched before the canisters.

Both their hands moving in a blur, Klehr and Wilson turned the release valves on all 16 gas canisters. The high pressure hissing of the gas release could be heard and the nozzles inside the ducts spewed out cones of green gas. The gas flooded the ducts instantly and began roiling in both directions aided by the maximised air flow. As the green miasma flowed through every duct and pipe in the facility, Klehr and Wilson both injected themselves with syrettes just as the green vapours began pouring from the air vents in the conduit as well as the primary engineering and climate control chamber.

"He's keying in the security code!" Maclise exclaimed pointing at the monitor which showed Captain Essex tapping away at the keypad with his left hand while his right held a suppressor mounted pistol.

"… _Goshawk Leader to Olympus! We can-NOT get hold of Falcon leader! Our internal frequencies are being jammed and it's getting colder in here than it is out-SIDE! What's happening?! Someone answer us…"_

"He can't possibly have the code!" Parish yelled. "Maclise lock down the base, sound the intruder alert, let Goshawk team in and contact Captain Kowarski! Coddington! Raise Cheyenne Mountain Complex and inform them we've been infiltrated!"

While Coddington started back to her console, Maclise reached towards his console just as a soft familiar whoosh that had never sounded so blood chilling cut everyone off and Coddington broke into a full run for her console as the steel door of the C&C slid up and Maclise yelled out, grabbing for his Model 15 at his utility belt while slapping a large flat red button on his console.

"Get down! Everyone get down!"

Instantly, the lights in the entire hangar turned red and a dull, repeating klaxon blared out throughout the entire base and the lights buried behind glass inside the hangar ceiling changed to a red hue sending every personnel in the hangar running.

But Kerstin and Gerd were already striding into the C&C in separate directions faces dead calm and expressionless as the slides of their weapons clacked and snapped back and forth apparently without any sound of gunfire while the steel door slid shut down behind them.

"Go Bennett! Go!" Freebairn yelled as he and Bennett charged in opposite directions on their eastern catwalk, M16s partially levelled as they leaped up the staircase connecting to the catwalks at the north and south walls while the klaxon blared on.

At the same time, 3 to 4 air police each on the south and north catwalks charged back towards the entrance at the east wall, boots clanging on the metal floors of the walkways.

In the C&C, Higgs shook as 2 bullets from the Hi-Power shattered his stocky chest, spraying blood out his back over the console and Cahn just before the Airman First Class also spasm in his chair as bullets found his chest as well and at the same time Maclise convulsed as 2 bullets from Gerd's P1 drilled his chest just as the airman aimed his Model 15.

A jagged short scream emitted from Coddington as Maclise slammed backwards onto his console just as she managed to get to her's. Parish didn't have time to do anything as the P1's next round drilled his right eye and blasted out through the back of his head, spraying blood and brain fluids over the CCTV screens.

Kerstin's Hi-Power clacked twice as she walked over to the left wall sending a half standing Soule convulsing as 9mm Parabellums spearing through her left breast. She dropped onto her console on her side with lifeless unseeing eyes as her weight slid her off the console to the floor just as Coddington's fingers grabbed for a series of switches only to have a P1's 9mm shell blast into her right shoulder blade and explode out the hollow of her shoulder, twisting her and dropping her to the floor.

Reaching the console along the left wall, Kerstin's steely fingers clattered in a blur over a keyboard entering a classified code. A light panel next to the door immediately lit up with a red light.

Outside the C&C door, Bennett and Freebairn came charging from either end of the corridor having entered via the doors at the east wall and coming in through the interconnecting corridors.

"Shit!" Bennett exclaimed upon seeing the 2 dead air policemen slumped on the floor, propped up against the blood stained walls. "Connor! Nolan!"

He and Freebairn converged on the door and as the Senior Airman aimed his M16 at the rectangle of titanium and steel, the Airman stabbed the push buttons on the panel. A buzz sounded and he stared at the panel blankly.

"Get the code right boy!" Freebairn exclaimed, his grip knuckle white on his M16 as he kept it aimed at the door. "Seven-Seven-three-zero-eight!"

"That's what I punched in!" Bennett exclaimed as he jabbed the code in again and again the panel buzzed at him accusingly.

"It's the override signal!" Freebairn gaped, lowering his M16 slightly. "They've overridden our access code from inside!"

"What?! But…only the commander and Major Parish has the code for that!" Bennett exclaimed as more air policemen charged down the corridor from either end.

As Coddington laid on the floor, blood spreading over the shoulder and breast of her flight duty uniform, she found herself staring up to see thick green gas or vapour pouring out from the air vents along the edges of the ceiling. A sharp foot fall gave her more immediate concerns and she next saw the expressionless, statue perfect features of Essex standing over her as he levelled the muzzle of the suppressor down at her. She felt almost relieved as her body began shaking from the actual shock and the inevitable agony that would follow from the bullet wound only to hear a shout that hurt even more.

"Get away from her!"

As waves of agony shook her body, Coddington turned her head on the floor to see Appleby on his hands and knees near Maclise, grabbing up his fallen Model 15 and raising it towards Essex in shaky hands.

Coddington tried to shout for Appleby to surrender but it was too late as out of her peripheral vision, she saw Gerd whip his P1 the few degrees it needed without even looking in the direction he was going to shoot and the slide clacked sharply twice.

Coddington's last ounces of strength went into the anguished scream that somehow managed it's way out her throat as Appleby jerked like a broken wooden marionette and his head snapped back with one bullet drilling his lung and the second shattered the lens of his glasses before detonating his eye and spraying the forward angled dark glass window 5 feet behind him with his blood and brain tissue.

The green vapour flooded the room and clouded Coddington's vision as Gerd turned the suppressor of the P1 back down to her and suddenly the pain faded rapidly from her body and her vision clouded and turned black. Her last thought was she would at least see both of them again soon.

Gerd's finger tightened on the P1's trigger only for his arm to be pushed aside as Kerstin moved past him, shoving his aim off as she stepped over the sleeping and wounded raven haired female on the floor.

"Eeeenuf Gerd!" Kerstin exclaimed as she walked over to the right wall's console. "Save the bullets!"

"Zhis ees NOT CONTROL!" Gerd exclaimed gesticulating with his palm and P1 facing up. "Vee don't have to PAY for owver own bullets!"

"Check on Klehr und Vilson!" Kerstin snapped as she punched the alert button on Maclise's console turning off the klaxon and returning the lights to normal.

A voice filtered over the radio in Maclise's console.

"… _Goshawk Leader to Olympus! Goshawk Leader to Olympus! Come in Olympus! Open the doors! We're trapped in the guard room unless…unless…yaaaaaawwwww….un…"_

"Gute Nacht Goshawks." Kerstin said as she turned off the radio.

Inside Archer's office, the Chief, wrists already chafing from the handcuffs where he remained sitting on the floor secured to the desk, gaped at the air vents along the edges of the ceiling as they started belching out green gas and vapour.

He looked over at the colonel who now held his M1911A1 in his left hand while his right came out from the lower right pocket on his service uniform coat with a syrette. The Chief looked about desperately as the _Super Sleep_ gas was already flowing over the carpeted floor of the entire office like an emerald fog bank. Thinking quickly, the Chief realised he had one more chance and looked up at his friend again as the colonel discarded the syrette after extracting the needle from his left arm and switched the gun back to his right hand.

"Patrick! Patrick listen to me!" the Chief implored, staring right at his friend's eyes. "It's not too late! I know you can do this! Fight it! Get me a syrette of the antidote and we can escape and get help! Patrick! Patrick!"

However, the colonel just stared coldly back at him, M1911A1 levelled in his direction. The Chief continued pleading with his friend but finally the green vapours swept over him cutting off his pleas. Despite the Chief struggling and shaking his head furiously, Archer watched as the man's eyelids trembled and finally lost the battle, sliding down till they were fully closed and he slumped fully against the desk, his head falling to one side.

As the emerald fumes swirled about him, Archer remained impervious and resolute, standing with his Colt aimed at the unconscious Chief while ignoring the pounding that came from the reinforced door of the office.

"Colonel! Colonel open the door please!" Mitchell yelled pounding his fist at the door even as green fumes swirled around him, his fellow airman Hale and the other air policemen from the north and south catwalks. "We've been compromised! The C and C has been taken! We HAVE to get you…you…to…yawwwwwwnn…."

Against their will, all the other air policemen followed suit, yawning and swaying before collapsing with a clatter of their M16s to the floor as did Bennett and Freebairn outside the door of the C&C.

Out in the main hangar, the entire floor was covered with the roiling green gas which swirled up and down between the height of a man's hip and knee. The technicians were already collapsed either on the floor around the Harriers they were servicing or some slumped over the edge of the cockpits where they had been inside or standing outside of when the gas struck them. Air Police still out on the hangar floor ran as fast as they could towards the east wall but all simply collapsed 4 or 5 at a time and added to the cacophony of snores.

A towing tractor came cruising out of the tunnel entrance at the south wall only to veer off the lane in the direction of the hangar doors but stopped within a few feet from the painted path as the driver rolled out of the seat.

Another towing tractor ahead of this one continued to shoot out straight across the entire hangar floor, the driver slumped back asleep, his heavy boot remaining on the clutch. The vehicle cruised along fortunately missing sleeping air police until it finally struck the north wall, jerking the sleeping airman inside. He only snorted in his sleep and turned to collapse across the seat in a more comfortable position.

A forklift that was halfway past the revetments swivelled about as the driver struggled to stay awake. He overshot the revetments and veered off to the right towards the internal building. Before he fell completely asleep, he dragged on the steering wheel. This caused the forklift to swerve sharply even further to the right, pitching the sleeping airman clear of the driver's seat to roll across the floor back towards the revetments while the vehicle slammed sideways against the wall about 30 feet to the right of the central door of the building.

Another forklift with a similarly fated driver came swerving out past the revetments as well. This could not keep his forklift from veering to the right as well but fell out without dragging on the steering wheel. As he rolled over the floor towards the revetment at the south side wall, his forklift slammed headlong into the first vehicle, it's forks sliding under the vehicle and it's carriage slamming into the first forklift's frame while it's mast struck the other vehicle's overhead guards. With their drivers sleeping away in the green mist, the 2 vehicles remained locked together in a bizzare T shape with their engines still running.

Inside the green gas filled tunnel leading to the storage area, the result was similar with snores echoing through the entire passageway and vehicles stalled either within the lanes and some even veering halfway up the tunnel walls before stopping.

Inside the green gas filled guard room, First Lieutenant Duvet snored up at the ceiling on his back on the floor, his out stretched right hand still holding his walkie-talkie and his M16 still strapped to his chest. The rest of Goshawk unit were also sleeping fitfully on the floor or across the seats at the briefing area, some of them including Rodriguez with mugs of beverages in their hands contents spilt over their parkas.

Inside the C&C, as the emerald vapours swirled about his knees, Gerd listened as Klehr's voice filtered over his communicator ring.

" _Super Sleep concentration through-out zer insterlation at two thousand parts per million based on zer engineering room sensors."_

"Gut." Gerd nodded. "Kerstin?"

Kerstin still at Maclise's console worked her fingers over some buttons which switched the views on the 6 CCTV monitors to check views of other parts of Area 53D. After a few moments, she reported.

"Super Sleep has permeated all points of Area Fifty-Three-D. Visual confirmation of all personnel neutlalized."

"Not bad for an evening's verk." Gerd nodded to himself as he raised his communicator ring and spoke again. "Jäger Scout Leedar to Jäger Scout Two und Three. Veturn internal temperature to normal und veport to zer C und C. "

" _Jawohl_ _Jäger Scout Leedar!_ _"_

Kerstin was now stepping over the sleeping and bleeding Coddington again to reach the communications console where she flicked a number of switches before turning a control knob slightly.

"Transmission gap een zer radio signal shield opened."

Just then, her green eyes focused on the splatter of blood and brain fluid from Appleby on the left most window pane and the neat little hole at the centre of the mess in the bullet proof glass. Gesturing angrily at her, she scowled.

"Gerd! Vhat kind of munition are you UZING?!"

Gerd lifted his communications ring again as he answered her without looking.

"Copper jacket ovar Tungsten Carbide penetrator core."

Kerstin whirled from the console, emerald eyes blazing at her colleague.

"Gerd you wahnsinnig dummkopf! Zheir flak jackets vouldn't even shtop NORMAL bullets! You could have KILLED us back een engineering vy accident!"

Gerd keyed his communications ring and answered without looking at her.

"No vorries, I promise eef I kill you it vill be on purpose—Jäger Scout Leedar to Wilde Jagd Leedar. Jäger Scout Leedar to Wilde Jagd Leedar. Come een Wilde Jagd Leedar."

Like a frigid wind blowing across the mountain tops of the Colorado rockies, SS-19's smooth alto voice filtered through the microphone inside Gerd's ring and for some reason, he felt a chill in the finger that wore it.

" _Wilde Jagd Leedar to_ _Jäger Scout Leedar. Status?_ _"_

"Jäger Scout Leedar to Wilde Jagd Leedar.—" Gerd replied cheerily looking about him then out the angled glass windows at the green miasma filled hangar floor though the ring somehow felt like ice on his finger. "—Phase Two ees green! Ovar."

" _Wilde Jagd Leedar to_ _Jäger Scout Leedar. Vell done all of you. ETA,_ _fünf minuten._ _"_


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

Ireson's chemical overshoe boot remained pressed down on the accelerator as the red Kenworth W900 he drove continued barrelling down Halfmoon Road. His hands gripped the large steering wheel with effortless ease as the winding road reflected against his aviator glasses.

Mikhail and Yuri's red W900 followed at a distance of 5 car lengths with equal velocity, the off-road tires and suspensions handling the increasingly rugged road with ease.

Leoni raised his walkie-talkie and spoke.

"Jäger Two to Jäger Le commandant. We are approaching zee turn off."

" _Acknowledged. Proceed_."

With that, Ireson hauled the steering wheel clockwise and their red W900 swung off the road, the large tires slamming onto the rocky terrain with a massive rumble. As the trailer followed suit in the turn, inside the trailer, SS-19 somehow remained rooted where she stood without a muscle moving while all the white anti-chemical jumpsuited men chorused, yelled and cursed as they were flung against the left wall of the trailer.

"Glupyy anglichanin!...dumbass BRIT!...I going to KICK zhat shtupid angol férfi félfenék!...I'm gonna take this truck and DRIVE it over his ASS!...I have zeen DRUNKEN Kühe

drive PANZERS more smoothly!..."

"My dolzhny byt' ryadom." Mikhail noted, his narrow jaw jutting at the lead semi's turn.

"Da!" Yuri agreed

A second later, Mikhail followed suit, turning the steering wheel. Inside the trailer, Max yelled out as he felt the shift.

"Ninety-Nine! Grab a hold of something!"

99 still sitting inside the pale gray Land Rover's driver's seat pulled her boots in and braced them against the floor of the vehicle while holding onto the steering column. Their trailer tilted as it turned to the right.

"Whooooaaaa…oooaaa!" Max exclaimed, eyes popping as he reeled backwards, missing a grab for the open door of the pale gray Land Rover.

"Max be careful!" 99 exclaimed as Max reeled back and turned clockwise with the centrifugal force and slammed face forward into the left wall of the trailer.

The trailer began rocking and jerking even more and they could hear the hissing and whining of the suspensions as it coped with the new terrain.

"Max! Are you alright?" 99 asked extending her legs back out.

Max turned from the wall of the trailer with his right hand's fingers pressing his nose and he grumbled with an even more nasally voice.

"Nammer menner Nienee-Ny."

The 2 W900s raced over the snow covered rocky terrain sending waves of white flying off to the sides with their passage. The trailers bounced and even see-sawed at points where they encountered large bumps in the rock but their journey remained unhampered.

Ireson followed a rough trail that brought them past expanses of sparse forests. The head beams of the semis became more distinct as the sun went lower and lower. Soon, they turned into twin horizontal pillars of light stabbing the dimness before them to illuminate their way.

"Max, shouldn't we have heard from the Chief by now?" 99 asked looking up at Max standing against the pale gray Land Rover's fender. "He was only minutes away when he last called."

"He must be having a tougher time than he thought coordinating the trap for KAOS." Max shrugged, his arms folded. "I mean, he's not working with his own men after all. Military men have strict protocols that are just hard da break out of even in an emergency. I remember back in Korea my pal Sid and I would shine our boots at twenty-one hundred hours SHARP! No matter how tired we were or how hungry or even if we hadn't bathed for three WEEKS! At twenty-one hundred hours, we-shined-our-BOOTS!"

"That's really disciplined of you Max." 99 smiled though swallowing slightly at the questionable hygiene part.

"You bet your sweet life!" Max nodded with a self-assured pout. "Saved OUR lives more than ONCE!"

"Cause you kept your boots in good condition?" 99's soft eyebrows arched.

"No it gave us an excuse on patrol da stop while the other guys walked past us and hit the landmines and ambushes first."

36 massive tires grinded to a stop in the snow in unison. The shadowy walls of the valley rose endlessly, disappearing into the gloom above them on either side of the two W900s which were now side by side with each other. Ireson's semi was positioned on the right and Mikhail's on the left.

Inside both the cabs, in a flurry of movement, Ireson, Leoni, Mikhail and Yuri began pulling up the upper part of their anti-chemical jumpsuits and sealing them up.

Inside the red W900's trailer, all the men were already pulling on the smooth gray, head conforming light gray face-piece of their GP-5 gas masks. Their eyes blinked rapidly behind the sealed circular eye pieces of the mask to settle it on as comfortably as possible while they pulled the tight cowls of their suits over their heads and masks. As they turned and flexed their necks to adjust their gear, the elongated portion of their gas masks where their nose and mouth were swung and flipped about with the heavy circular filter at the end making them look like comical bug-eyed, short trunked creatures in a cheesy science fiction TV show.

SS-19 remained however in her black outfit as she lifted her walkie-talkie to her veil.

"Wilde Jagd Leedar to Jägers Vun, Two, Three und Four. Are you all veady?"

It took a few seconds before the replied came over her walkie-talkie, even more muffled than usual by the GP-5s.

" _Jägers One an Two_ _ready don!"_

" _Jägers Tlee arn For rardy Wilde Jagd Ledar!_ _"_

"Stand by." SS-19 ordered and looked up. "Men?"

Drapikowski, his anti-chemical suit even baggier than the others due to his diminutive size, looked about him at the similarly suited men and turned to her about to jerk up a gloved thumb but was halted.

"Vait!" Hayler raised his gloved hand while he bent his mask, looking about with his 'snout' swinging left and right like a short trunked elephant. "Vheres my spare M-P magazines?"

"Zar!" Yakovlevich's muffled voice issued through his mask as he pointed to a spot to Hayler's left.

"Vhere?" Hayler said, canister and snout swining as he looked.

"Zar!" the tall, barrel chested KAOS agent repeated jabbing with his gloved finger.

"VHERE ees ZAR?!" Hayler exclaimed gesticulating with his gloved hands.

"Whare I POINTING!" Yakovlevich exclaimed jabbing with his gloved finger.

"I can't ZEE vhere you pointing!" Hayler exclaimed looking about feverishly.

"Turn your HEAD you idiot!" Drapikowski yelled.

Hayler finally rotated his head and the magazines came within the view of his circular glass eye pieces.

"Oh zhere ees zar!" Hayler realised as he stooped and picked up the items and as he pushed them into the pouches on his belt declared. "You can't zee out zer SIDES vith zhese on!"

"Can't your country make better stuff?!" Barton exclaimed at Baidukov with both gloved hands raised and head tilted causing his snout to hang to one side.

"You wan bettar stuff—stop buying DISKOUNT!" Baidukov growled behind his mask and jerking his chin at Barton causing his snout and canister to flop.

"We're okay boss!" Drapikowski gave the thumbs up.

SS-19 nodded and pushed the button on her walkie-talkie.

"Wilde Jagd Leedar to Jäger Scout Leedar. Open zer doors."

" _Jawohl Wilde Jagd Leedar! Und willkommen—to Area Fifty-Three-D."_

Max and 99 stood behind the pale gray Land Rover and looked about the trailer.

"Max, we've stopped for a while now. Do you think we're here?"

"We must be Ninety-Nine." Max nodded. "Plus I think SS-Nineteen's vehicle is next to us. We're probably right in front of the hangar."

99 frowned in the dark as she wondered.

"Then why isn't anything happening? The Chief and the colonel MUST know they're here and I'm sure there are sentries outside that's spotted them and reported their position. What are they waiting for?"

"Maybe they wanna get KAOS inside before they spring their trap." Max offered looking about.

"Isn't that rather risky Max?" 99 thought. "I mean…"

"Ssshh!" Max shushed looking up. "What's that?"

A massive continuous rumbling permeated the entire space they were in and also, the floor of the trailer started vibrating under the outsoles of their footwear. It was so strong, they could feel it all the way up to their knees.

99's black kidskin gloved hand grabbed at Max's arm as she declared.

"It sounds and FEELS like an earthquake Max! Should we take a look?"

"It's a risk Ninety-Nine but let's be careful."

A few seconds later, the hatch in the roof of the matte gray semi edged up and Max and 99, both precariously clinging to the ladder at the same time emerged into a dark world illuminated by a blazing yellow flare in front of them that was as blinding as the sun at first due to the gloom. The freezer like air raked their unprotected faces numbing their cheeks in seconds.

Keeping the hatch low, they looked to either side and saw the sheer walls of some kind of valley on either sides of them. The walls were actually far away which hinted at the width of the valley itself. 99 at Max's right shoulder, turned to the right and nudged Max before pointing a gloved finger at the other semi on their right. Even both semis side by side barely occupied half the width of the valley.

Then as they focused their eyes forward into the blazing illumination, they both gaped at the source of the sound and vibration. The headlights of both the W900s revealed a sheer wall of solid rock—Mount Colossal itself though they knew likely just a fragment of it. The wall rose up and disappeared into the night dark, they knew going up for at least 14,000 feet. But right now, the marvel that the headlights revealed about 80 yards in front of both the semis, caught their breath as what appeared to be a massive slab of the mountain wall was lifting upwards.

Their eyes remained wide as they watched the entire width of the wall between the valley walls and reaching upwards for over 20 yards, tilt upwards slowly, lifted by hidden giant hinges at it's top edge. Snow rained off the lower edge of the slab as it rose throwing back the lights of the head beams in millions of twinkles. 99 noted the near 30 foot thickness of the slab at it's side and now over the rumbling, she heard the hidden technology moved the massive piece of nature.

"That—" Max declared over the noise. "—is the SECOND biggest moving slice of a mountain—I have ever seen!"

"Max look! Underneath!" 99 pointed with a black kidskin gloved finger, her breath fogging in the air before her smooth, soft lips.

The slab of the mountain wall was almost parallel to the ground now and it revealed behind it, the doors of the hangar itself—a rectangle of matte gray titanium-steel alloy unbelievable in it's size at 200 feet wide and 50 feet high.

Max and 99 braved a gush of frosty wind from the north that bit their faces mercilessly as they looked on and next a dull _boom_ shook both semis, followed by a loud humming which sounded to 86 like some form of giant pistons. And before their eyes, the giant rectangle of titanium began sliding upwards. 99 had to blink when she thought she saw 'teeth' at the leading edge of the door only to realised they were square protrusions extracting from corresponding square indentations across the hangar threshold, serving as some form of locking mechanism.

Almost immediately the light from inside the hangar sliced out across the widening gap between the door's edge and the door.

"What'd I tell ya Ninety-Nine?" Max said tilting his head towards her. "They're gonna trap KAOS in-SIDE the complex. Let's get back in. I don't wanna have my head out here when the shooting starts."

Max and 99 started lowering themselves but at the last moment her gloved fingers grabbed at his bicep, and he was amazed at her strength at times given he could feel it even through the thick parka sleeve and his sports jacket and shirt underneath.

"Max! Look!"

Max followed 99's kidskin gloved finger back to the rising hangar door. It had rose to a height of nearly 6 feet now and what seemed like fog was beginning to swirl in billowing clouds around the opening.

"Just the heat from inside the hangar reacting with the cold mountain air Ninety-Nine and producing green fog. It's nothing." Max said and began lowering himself again but 99's grip did not relax as she yelled out over the noise.

"Max! The fog is GREEN!"

"That's what I said Ninety-Nine!" Max sighed. "Green fog.—" Max's eyes popped as he snapped his head forward to stare at the billowing clouds rolling out into the valley from inside the hangar. "The FOG is GREEN?!"

They both turned to gape at each other before they dropped back down yanking the hatch back into place.

"Max!" 99 exclaimed when they were both on the floor of the trailer again. "The hangar is filled with _Super Sleep_!"

"Now, now Ninety-Nine! Calm down!" Max exclaimed with his palms out. "There's a perfectly logical explanation for this."

"What Max?!"

"Eeeeh…" Max looked from her wide deep blue eyes to the floor of the hangar before turning back to her eyes and suggesting. "Any chance they're just sanitizing the air in there with some industrial strength gaseous antiseptic? Air must get really stale inside a mountain."

"Oooh Max! No!" 99 exclaimed grabbing his arm with both gloved hands. "It HAS to be _Super Sleep_! Something must have happened to the Chief and everything's gone terribly wrong!"

"Let's call the Chief!" Max thought grabbing for his T-37's IEM.

"No Max wait!" 99 objected. "If the Chief is captured or hiding we might give ourselves and him away!"

"You're right Ninety-Nine." Max agreed shaking a finger.

"Max! Once the doors are fully opened, the trucks will head in and the KAOS agents are going to open up both the semis to begin loading the fuel!" 99 declared her blue eyes wide as she looked about them. "We need a plan!"

"Right!" Max agreed. "Let me think.—Right! I've got it!"

"Great Max! What do we do?"

"Okay! I've got two ideas!" Max declared putting up 2 fingers. "Now, one of them is not so hot. But the OTHER one, is a hum DINGER! This is what we do. When the trucks get into the hangar, the trailers will open up and the KAOS agents will discover us! We then—SURRENDER—and in exchange for our lives, we give them all our nation's greatest military and intelligence secrets and agree to join KAOS and work for them for a higher salary and better benefits than we're getting now!"

99 blinked, her eyes flashing blue even in the dim light as she gasped.

"Max! That's a TERRIBLE idea! KAOS represents EVIL! We can't work for them!"

"Oh." Max realised and shifted his feet as he asked. "So you think we should go with the one that's not-so-good?"

"Oh Max! Hurry!" 99 pleaded as the booming of the hangar door opening grew louder and the walls of the trailer began vibrating ominously.

"Uuuuhhh..uuuhhh…Okay! I gaddit!" Max said pointing at the vehicles with them. "They wanna load the fuel into the trailer. So they gadda move these two Land Rovers. We'll sabotage the engines. IF they can't get them out of the trailer it'll slow them down."

"Good thinking Max!" 99 declared with a pump of a gloved fist. "Then while they're distracted we'll find a way to stop them, find the Chief and call for help! But Max we'll be recognised the instant they open the trailer."

"Uuuuh…" Max thought with a finger on his chin as he looked about. "Uh huh! The suits! The spare suits inside the Land Rovers. We'll put them on with the gas masks!"

"Good thinking Max!" 99 declared as she ran to the other side of the pale gray landrover throwing off her parka coat. "Let's take the antidote too. That way we can get rid of the suits later if we need to!"

"Good idea Ninety-Nine!" Max agreed removing his parka coat as he ran over to the black Land Rover and opened up the hood. "I'll use the miniature tool-kit in my belt and heel compartment da sabotage the engines, you get the antidote and the suits and masks ready!"

Outside, the hangar doors had opened completely and the green gas from within rolled out over the snow glowing a brilliant emerald in the lights from the hangar and the head beams.

Ireson and Mikhail, eyes focused through the circular glass eye pieces of their GP-5 gas mask, stomped on the clutch and accelerator pedals. The 18 wheels of each W900 began champing over the snow again as they moved forward towards the glowing emerald fog. As the vehicles approached, the green cloud reached out enveloping the tractor engines as they moved into the hangar. Inside Ireson's W900's box trailer, the men peered about through their GP-5's circular eye pieces at the green gas that was already beginning to snake and swirl in along the edges of the trailer walls on both sides. SS-19 now walked up to join them, her gloved fingers opening up a pouch.

"Boss, shouldn't you be getting a suit and mask on?" Barton's muffled query came as he gestured with a gloved hand while leaning his submachine gun on his shoulder.

"Not necessary." SS-19's voice sliced through her black veil as her fingers emerged from the pouch with a syrette.

"Mi az?" Lacza asked as he clutched his Beretta M12 while shifting the strap of a backpack he had on.

"Antidote." SS-19 answered as she removed the hood and without hesitation or expression, inserted the needle through her sleeve into the crook of her elbow. "Neutralizes und inoculates against zer effects of _Super Sleep_. Courtesy of the Marquise's mind-controlled minion. Only enough for me und zer advance team for now. But after today, ALL of KAOS vill have it."

"Khorosho!" Baidukov nodded his cowled head as he pointed a gloved finger to his gas mask. "Because deescount Russkiy masks keep radiation out good but not let see vhere nuclear reactor ees!"

Inside the matte-gray W900's trailer, Max slammed shut the hood of the pale gray Land Rover and stuffed a few silver miniature tools he had back inside a hidden compartment on the ventral side of his belt.

"Okay! Rovers are done!" Max declared zipping up the hidden compartment of the belt and began slipping it through the belt loops on his Davy's gray trousers. "Let's…OW!" he exclaimed as 99 poked the syrette needle into his left arm.

"Sorry Max!" 99 apologised as she withdrew the empty syrette and handed him one of the anti-chemical suits.

"We gadda hurry Ninety-Nine!" Max declared, stepping into the baggy jump suit. "They're moving inside as we speak!"

"I know Max!" 99 declared as she pulled the suit up over her knees. "Ooooh I hope the Chief is alright! I can't imagine what…what…umm…oh no. Max! I…I think I have a problem!"

99 realised her quandary as the baggy crotch of the anti-chemical jump suit started pushing up the hem of her navy blue knee length woollen pleated skirt.

"What Ninety-Nine?!" Max exclaimed shrugging on the white jumpsuit over the shoulders of his Davy's gray sports jacket. "We don't' have any time left!"

"Max! My…my skirt is in the way!" 99 exclaimed looking about trying to find a way around the problem as she held onto the bulky garment at knee level.

"Well lift it UP!" Max exclaimed swinging his arms up in an exasperated gesture.

"Maaax!" 99 gasped, her cheeks warming in the frigid air.

"You've got stockings on!"

"They don't go all the way up Max!"

"Alright fine!" Max grimaced as he snatched up a GP-5 gas mask 99 had brought him. "Close your EYES when you lift them up!"

99 gaped, feeling her cheeks turning crimson as she gasped.

"Maaaax!"

"Well I can't close MY eyes!" Max declared eyes popping and nodding fervently. "I need them open to put my suit on and keep an eye on you to make sure YOU get your suit on right while holding up your skirt! I'm just trying to be helpful here Ninety-Nine! Be reasonable!"

Fighting the rush of blood to her face and rolling her eyes sideways, 99 gushed.

"Maax! Turn-around!"

"Why don't you EVER wanna try MY ideas?!" Max declared bouncing a hand off his chest.

Standing at the forward angled black glass windows, Gerd looked out over the hangar, now filled with the emerald miasma of the _Super Sleep_ agent. The two W900s cruised slowly into the hangar, side by side, the green mist clinging to their massive radiator grills as they moved and their mass ploughing twin grooves in the fog which rapidly reformed behind them.

Once the rear bumpers of their box trailers moved past the threshold of the hangar doors, Gerd turned from the window to face the command and communications centre where Wilson was now sitting at Coddington's console making adjustments.

The KAOS lieutenant's light blue eyes gazed over to Klehr who stood at the consoles at the right side wall, his hand on the T-Shaped lever which was now pushed up to the highest angle as he ordered.

"Sie sind drin. Schließe die Türen."

With a nod, Klehr pulled the T-Shaped lever all the way back down triggering a low hum from the wall console while outside in the hangar, the dull boom echoed through the large space again followed by the churning of the hidden pistons. Gerd turned back to the window to see the 200 feet wide slab of titanium sliding back down, the teeth like box protrusions at it's leading edge, arrowing towards their corresponding indentations across the threshold.

The giant W900s continued to cruise down the length of the hangar steadily, the roar of their engines filling the enormous space almost drowning out the descending hangar door behind them.

"Zhere she is!" Leoni pointed with an anti-chemical gloved hand.

"Oi see er!" Ireson nodded in the driver's seat, gray eyes narrowed behind the circular eye pieces of his GP-5 gas mask as he saw through the windshield, the green flight duty uniformed figure of Kerstin about 10 yards in front of the two semis'.

Kerstin stood facing the towering W900s, hands raised in the air and waving the vehicles forward, further into the hangar as she walked backwards steadily with the green gas swirling around her knees.

"Just in time Max!" 99's muffled voice filtered through her GP-5 mask as she pointed with a finger clothed in the hazmat suit's heavy anti-chemical glove.

Max followed her finger and squinting slightly through the circular eye pieces of his own GP-5 mask, he could see the green mist seeping into the trailer from the bottom edge of the trailer's walls. Looking up as he rolled his parka coat up, he could see the same effect on all 4 edges of the trailer on both sides.

"Alright Ninety-Nine, here's the plan." Max's muffled nasal voice fought to escape the confines of his GP-5 while he tucked his rolled up parka under his arm and adjusted his shoulder holster which he now wore over his hazmat suit. "We have to get out before any of them does so they don't see us coming out of this truck. The moment the side wings start to open, we slip out, ditch our coats, blend in and scope out the place!"

"Right Max!" 99 nodded, the elongated extension of her gas mask with the canister filter at the end swinging slightly.

As a final boom from the hangar doors announced their completed closure, Kerstin signalled with both raised palms outward at the vehicles. Immediately, both Mikhail and Ireson stomped on their brake pedals and with a loud hiss of the airbrakes, the two W900s came to a stop, side by side with about 70 to 80 feet of space between them and about the same distance between the tractor units and about 100 feet from the revetments.

"Jäger Scout Vun to Wilde Jagd Leedar, you may exeet your vehicles." Kerstin spoke into her walkie-talkie. "I vill get zer antidote und bring zem out heya."

" _Acknowledged."_ Came the reply over the communications device and Kerstin turned and ran towards the internal building.

Inside the command centre, Gerd turned away from the angled windows and walked back towards the consoles.

"Vilson. Anyzing on communications?"

Wilson now wearing Coddington's headset with his black leather gloved right hand pressed to the earphone, shook his granite hard cheekbones as he rumbled a reply.

"Clear. No chatter on any of the frequencies or comm channels."

"Vight, keep monitoring." Gerd ordered and as Wilson nodded, looked over to Klehr. "Make zure zer outer camouflage door ees een place."

"Jawohl!" Klehr replied as he began focusing on another set of switches and buttons.

Mikhail and Ireson cut the engines of their W900s before flicking various switches on their dashboards. Smooth, distinctive mechanical whinings emitted from both trucks as the motorized ramps over the rear of the trailers began lowering towards the floor. At the same time, the Gull-Wing sides of the trailer's slowly began swinging upwards on the hinges positioned along the side edges of their roofs.

Max and 99's eyes focused intently as the walls of their trailer began to move, the bottom edges moving away from the edges of the trailer's floor, turning the seeping emerald vapours into belching clouds. The moment the gap was wide enough, they both dropped down on the trailer floor at the rapidly moving left side wall, both clutching their rolled up parkas.

Sliding lithely off the trailer between the edge of the trailer floor and the edge of the rising Gull-Wing trailer side, their anti-chemical overshoe boots struck the floor of the hangar. They found themselves in a space so vast it was difficult to comprehend it was inside a mountain. And despite the green gas roiling and swirling only at their knees, combined with the intense lighting from the ceiling, it cast an emerald hue on everything around them.

No sooner had Max and 99 tossed their parkas underneath the trailers they had just exited from, hoping no one would look underneath the giant vehicles, they could already hear the rubber soles of anti-chemical overshoe boots stomping about from the inside of the other trailer. At the same time, motor-vehicle engines roared to life and they realised it must be the other 2 Land Rovers inside the other trailer.

The gull-wing sides/doors of the trailers reached their maximum elevation aligned with their roofs as Max and 99 hurried towards the rear of their trailer, the green clouds swirled around their knees as they moved. They could already see, through the opened trailer sides, the hazmat suited and gas masked KAOS agents running about as they spilled from the other trailer, carrying out orders being yelled out by a female voice, likely SS-19.

"…Drivers! Stay vith zer vehicles undless I call for you! Lacza! Barton! Marold! Baidukov! Zhere! X-Tens! Explosives!...Drapikowski! Quittner! Get zer Lund rovers out of zer uzzer truck! Zer vest of you! Man zer forklifts! Zer fuel ees down zhat tunnel! Start loading up zer trucks!...Be careful! Move vhatever obstacles und personnel out ov your vay!..."

It was then that Max and 99, halfway towards the rear of their trailer, saw that the two trucks had parked in approximate parallel alignment with a semi-circular entrance in the south wall, likely the entrance to the tunnel that SS-19 was referring to. They noted that the entrance and the tunnel itself must measure at least 50 feet in diameter, as they reached the rear of their trailer just in time to see a matt brown Land Rover of the same model as the one inside the trailer they had hid in, back out of the other trailer. The driver backed the Land Rover with great skill down the trailer's rear ramp before veering to it's left, tires squeaking on the hangar floor and arrowed towards the opposite wall where a set of parking lots were located near the hangar door. Before he was halfway there, a second Land Rover, this one dark green was already screeching backwards down the ramp of the trailer.

Max and 99 were about to proceed just as 2 KAOS agents, one of medium height and the other shorter than Max with his hazmat suit hanging on his small frame ran towards them. Max had to fight his instinct to go for his Colt Official Police in the holster under his left arm but to both their relief, the diminutive one of the pair gestured at them with an exasperate sweep of his arm as his muffled shout came through the swinging snout of his GP-5.

"You heard the boss! Get the doors open so we can get the jeeps out!"

The CONTROL agents realised the double-rear doors of their trailer were still shut and Max gave a gloved thumbs up and a nod nudging 99 along. They both climbed onto the ramp while the 2 KAOS agents scrambled into the trailer floor by climbing in via the open sides.

"Ninety-Nine!" Max's muffled voice came through his mask as he pulled on the bolts of the rear doors as they stood at the top of the ramp. "You heard them. The fuels down that tunnel. That's our next stop. Maybe we can find a way da stop them from uploading it."

"Right Max!" 99's nodded as she pulled on the handles.

No sooner had they yanked the doors opened and ran back down the ramp, they could hear the whining of the engines of the black and pale gray Land Rovers struggling against the sabotage that Max had implemented.

As they hurried through the green haze to find a forklift, they could hear the shouts from the two KAOS agents in the Land Rovers.

"Hülye dzsip! Engin nem indul el!"

"If you're saying the stupid rovers won't start, I KNOW that! How bout' you FIX THEM instead of whining!"

"YOU fix engin you apró amerikai!"

Many of the forklifts had stopped after veering off course when their drivers had fallen asleep from the tranquilizer gas. As Max and 99 crossed the hangar past the other semi to find one, they saw the KAOS agents unceremoniously yanking the sleeping drivers out of the forklifts before commandeering them. Several forklifts were already whizzing into the tunnel causing the emerald gas to roil aside with the speed of their passage.

They managed to find a forklift which had come to a stop about 20 yards from the south wall with the driver slumped over the wheel.

The bulky, green flight suited, brown haired driver's snores, up close was louder than any engine. 99 climbed aboard and pushed the driver off the steering wheel and out the side towards Max who was standing on the floor at the side waiting.

"Ooomph!" Max grunted with effort as the mass of the big snoring airman slid onto his shoulder and back. "I'm so glad our saving-the-world is giving him time da CATCH UP on his forty-WINKS! He oughta…uh oh!"

99 looked curiously as Max straightened with the big airman in a fireman's carry and she gasped as she saw Max's eyes pop behind the round glass eye pieces of his GP-5 and he began sinking slowly to the floor, his knees buckling under the weight.

"Max!" 99 gasped climbing carefully over the gear shift to reach him.

It took a few minutes to extricate Max from under the airman on the floor before they were cruising down the green lit tunnel with Max behind the wheel. As the arched walls of the tunnel flashed by with 99 standing on the steps of the forklift, holding onto the overhead guard and a hand grip on the vehicle frame, they could see other forklifts already heading back in the opposite lane towards the hangar in flashes of white, green paint and metal of the steel pallets of fuel on their forks. They also observed that sleeping airmen who had succumbed to the green fumes in the tunnel had indeed been moved off to the sides where they now slept, snoring away on the floor or slumped against the tunnel walls.

"They're moving fast Ninety-Nine!" Max noted as he turned the steering wheel of their forklift steadily to match the arc of the tunnel floor.

"They'll have at least one truck loaded in no time!" 99 nodded her cowled head. "I don't understand this Max! Where're the reinforcements from the Joint Chiefs and the Pentagon?!"

"There's something ELSE I'm more worried about!" Max declared, his beady eyes squinting behind the circular eye pieces of his GP-5 gas mask.

"What's that Max?"

"It's past SIX o'clock! I hope the Chief remembers da put in our overtime for this!"

As 99's sigh echoed in her gas mask as she smirked behind it and roll her eyes behind the eye pieces, the green light at the end of the tunnel expanded and a few seconds later, their forklift brought them into a vast square space. As they looked about them, 99 estimated it must have measured almost twice the length of the hangar itself. A great warehouse, carved out of the mountain. Every wall was lined with rows upon rows of pallets of galvanized steel each holding 8 5-foot high canisters of SRP-50. The pallets combined with the canisters created a row of silver and gray along each wall, arranged in numerous rows and double stacked.

There were about 6 or 7 commandeered forklifts arrowing about lifting pallets out from their rows and veering off to cruise back to the tunnel to return to the hangar. Some of the KAOS agents were helping to direct the forklifts to overcome the driver's blindsides. As Max drove casually towards a rear corner of the warehouse, 99 leaned in towards him to ask.

"Max! How're we gonna stop them?"

"How bout asking them politely?"

99 grimaced behind her gas mask as she cast a sideways glare at Max only to realize she could not see past the narrow field of vision of the GP-5. Max veered their forklift sharply to come to a stop facing the rows of pallets. He elevated the forks and moved the vehicle forward to insert them into the slots under a pallet on the top row before cutting the engine.

"This should at least stop THIS forklift." Max said cutting the engine and pulling out the key. "Let's go look around and see what else we can do!"

"Right Max!"

As they got down from their vehicle, another forklift came whizzing towards them, an additional KAOS agent standing on the right side steps of the vehicle, obviously accompanying the driver to guide them during the loading process. The driver was already swerving clockwise in their path to face the pallets, before Max and 99 could get clear.

"Alvight Meisinger!" the accompanying KAOS agent yelled "I'll guide you from zer floor!"

"Ja!" came the muffled reply from the driver as he began adjusting the elevation of the forks.

Not wanting to look suspicious by walking in a completely different direction, the CONTROL agents just continued walking past this forklift, behind it's rear bumper. 99 was walking on Max's left and so was between the forklift's bumper and her partner. She leaned over to Max as they walked.

"Max! See the top of the tunnel entrance? I think there's a bulkhead that we can lower over it like the hangar door. I don't see any other way out of this area other than a few normal doors. If we can close off the tunnel, their forklifts would be trapped. That would definitely slow down their progress."

"Good idea Ninety-Nine. I think I see a panel there next to the entrance. Let's go."

With that, they cleared the rear bumper of the forklift just as the white hazmat suited form of the accompanying KAOS agent came swinging out into 99's path. She tried to side step him but it was too late and she stifled a yelp as she slammed chest first into the KAOS agent's upper torso.

"Hoppla!" the KAOS agent exclaimed not even budging an inch as 99 practically bounced off his solid form, staggering back a step before she stopped herself. "Arrgghh! Shtupid Russisch-made gas masks! Can't see a THING out…"

99 was about to side step properly and continue on their way but she froze as the KAOS agent stopped himself in mid-apology to jerk his gas-masked head forward and she saw his crystal blue eyes behind his circular eye pieces narrowing.

99's heart practically stopped as his blue irises swivel down lower towards her chest and she realized what had happened. The bulk of the hazmat suit, at least 2 to 3 sizes too large for her had hidden her female form well but she now realized it was not enough. Despite the layers of the hazmat suit, her thick cropped jacket underneath followed by her t-shirt, the impact of her collision against the KAOS agent had clearly conveyed the tactile sensation of the soft but distinctive feminine slopes of her chest. She realized their ruse was all but over and she could feel Max at her side tensing, ready to go for his revolver.

99 had to fight against her instinct to exhale visibly with relief as the KAOS agent suddenly jerked himself back to his full height, with his anti-chemical gloved hands raised, palms outwards, his muffled voice cutting out quickly through is mask and his blue eyes wide behind the circular eye pieces.

"Kerstin! So leid! So leid! It's me, Hayler! Zhese shtupid masks you know.—" the KAOS agent shrugged his broad shoulders while pointing at the eye pieces with fingers of both his gloved hands. "—NO peripheral vision at ALL!"

99 could feel Max relaxing at her side and she was glad her gas mask muffled and disguised her voice as she tried to come up with a believable reply and flapped her gloved hand to get him to move on.

"Vergiss es! Keep loazing! Schnell!"

"Jawohl!" Hayler nodded his cowled head and stepped past them.

99 and Max finally breathed out behind their gas mask in relief only to jerk to stop, the soles of their overshoe boots screeching against the floor as the KAOS agent called Hayler suddenly backed up to stand before them again with a gloved finger raised and his cowled head tilted to one side.

"Eeeeh…veren't you een zer advance team vith zer antidote?"

99 could again feel Max tensing to burst into violence next to her. Hayler was at least 2 or 3 inches taller than Max and her collision into him had revealed to her a rock hard, highly conditioned form. He had some kind of large semi-automatic pistol in a shoulder holster over his hazmat suit with spare magazine pouches under his right arm and a strap from his left shoulder down to his right hip held what looked like an MP-40 submachine gun at his back, with the barrel pointing downwards behind his right hip and spare magazine pouches on his utility belt for the MP-40. She calculated the speed she would need to grab the pistol while Max went for the MP-40 after they neutralized him should her reply fail to pacify him.

With a shrug and tossing of her gloved palms into the air, 99 replied.

"Eeen hurry. Dropped eet."

Hayler immediately straightened and nodded knowingly causing the elongated portion of his gas mask with the heavy circular filter to flop up and down like a manic elephant as he declared.

"Uuuuuhhh! Ja! Ja! Ja! I too am no stranger to zer ill-timed-eqivpment-dlopping! Afzer owver glider lanzed at Fort Eben-Emael, I vas running, shooting, flame throwing und planting explosives for ovar FIFTEEN minutes before I looked up—" Hayler demonstrated by swivelling his blue eyes up behind his circular eye pieces and pointing to his head. "—und vealised, my helmet vas no longer on my HEAD! Und zhen—" Max and 99 were swivelling their eyes behind their own eye pieces, watching in dismay as the other KAOS agents in their forklifts lifted pallet after pallet of the fuel canisters and sped towards the tunnel while empty forklifts came purring back into the warehouse for more. "—vhen I parachuted zown to Maleme airfield on Crete—" Hayler droned on now gesturing with both hands towards the floor at one spot before moving it to his left to another spot to emphasize his point. "—a huuuuge gust of vind heets me just as I leaped out zer Ju Fifty-Two und sends me flying ovar FIVE kilometres to zer east into Pla-TA-nias vhere I lanzed of ALL places—een a FRUIT tree!—" Hayler tossed his arms up at this latest revelation and Max was rolling his eyes at the delay while 99 was glancing nervously at the other KAOS agent driving the forklift who was adjusting the forks and moving the vehicle forward as Hayler went on. "—Zhere I vas, my parachute STUCK een zer tree branches vith my boots dangling fifteen feet above zer ground! Zo I shtarted veaching for my bayonet—" 99 squinted behind her gas mask as Hayler began animatedly patting his chest in demonstration before slapping his gloved hands to his ribs to emphasize his point. "—und ZHAT'S vhen I vealized—my M-P-FORTY vas missing!—" Hayler flapped his gloved hands dramatically at this revelation. "—ZO much for being zer lucky qvarter to jump vith ees main veapon! _Sigh!_ Und eet vas a nice vun too. Fresh out from zer factory. Und zhen, as eef zhat vas not bad enuv—to put zer kirsche on zer Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte—" Hayler's big square shoulders slumped dramatically as he bowed his head and gestured at the floor as though he was back on Crete in the tree. "—eet seems zer New Zealand Tventy-Eighth Battalion shpotted me cause vhile I vas trying to cut myself free, six very big und very angry Maori infantrymen showz up pointing zheir Lee-Enfields und a Bren machine gun up zer tree! For obvious veasons, zhey vere NOT happy to see me. So I thought, that's eet—zhis ees zee END of my glorious military career. I'll spend zer vest of zer var as a prisoner und eef zhey don't have me SHOT, vhen zer uzzer Fallschirmjägers find OUT, I'll be known forever as Stecken-Oben-Ein-Baumjunge!"

At this, 99 could not help but emit a soft laugh behind her gas mask and stopped only when Max turned and glared at her through the round glass eye pieces of his GP-5. Hayler laughed as well along with 99 lifting his gloved hands palms up.

"Look uuuh, we'd really like da hear all about it but as you can see we're in the middle of something and these classified fuel wont steal themselves…" Max tried to intercede but Hayler apparently was not done with his tale.

"—Stuck-Up-A-Tree-Boy! Ja! Zer paratroopers LUUUVE to call anyvun who lands een tree zhat nickname! My friend Norbert vas Stecken-Oben- Ein-Baumjunge for zer entire var because he lanzed een an apple tree at Stendal. ZO!—" Hayler declared looking up and pointing a finger to the ceiling of the enormous warehouse inside a mountain. "—I decided to make zer best ov zer situation! After all, eet ees alvays an honour to meet men of zer same trade und zhere are few finer soldiers zhan zer Maori! I did not speak English so vell back zhen, so I vaved—" the KAOS agent waved his gloved right hand in demonstration to Max's frustrated head shake as 99 looked about uncertainly. "—und greeted zhem varmly vith "Guten Morgen! Wundervoller Tag für einen Fallschirmabwurf! Gibt es in der Nähe eine Taverne? Bevor Sie mich in die Haftanstalt bringen, lass mich dir einen Doppelbock kaufen!—" Pausing to look at Max, Hayler translated. "—Basically, I zaid good morning, told zhem eet vas a nice day to parachute und offered to buy zhem a doppelbock before zhey took me to zheir prison camp.—" Hayler paused again, cocked his cowled head causing the canister and snout of his gas mask to sway like a puzzled elephant as he contemplated with a gesture of his right gloved hand while his other hand remained at his hip. "—Now, eezer zhey didn't speak German or hate doppelbock—but zhis gesture did NOT calm zhem down! I mean, WHO doesn't like doppelbock?!—" Max started trying to look at his watch but realised it was sealed under his suit and just tossed his cowled head back again at the delay. "—und ZHATS vhen vun ov owver gliders came shwooping low over zer tree tops und all six of zhem vent like zhis—" Hayler demonstrated by turning his shoulders and looking backwards before snapping back to face them. "—I SVEAR, I have never pulled my VIS -Five so qvickly or pulled zer trigger so fast in-my-LIFE!—" Hayler paused to nod gravely. "—Of course, zer Maori Battalion didn't get a vaputation az a formidable fighting force for nuzzing. Two of zheir Lee-Enfields still vent off. Vun bullet grazed my—excuse my langvage—" Hayler looks up and points with his finger to his left buttock. "—platz-wo-ich-sitze! Und zer uzzer vun HAPPENS to heet zer right branch above me—" Hayler points upwards. "—freeing my parachute. I DROP to zer ground und BREAK my ankle!—" Hayler looks up from pointing at his foot and sighed, shaking his head. "—Shpent zer next two oovers, limping avound vith zheir Bren gun as a crutch bevore I managed to link up vith zum of my unit. Vhat a DAY!—" Hayler paused with a contemplative tilt of his cowled head causing his gas mask's snout to hang from it's slanted face piece. "—alzo, on hindsight, perhaps it vasn't such a bad thing…"

99 could not help but listened intently while still trying to assess the situation around them while Max was standing with unmitigated annoyance with his gloved hands on his hips. Hayler looked up and seemed to come to a realisation.

"Uh! But I digress! So leid!" Hayler said lifting his hands up to his shoulders apologetically. "Vight! Clazified fuel to shteal und sell to rotten peeple! I tell you vest of story over nice eisbock lazer! Meisinger! Sorry to keep you vaiting!"

With that, Hayler hurried past them his MP-40 clacking against his back and Max scowled as he and 99 continued on their way.

"Well if we ever get out'ev this, we won't need our parkas anymore when we step out of the base." Max grumbled through his mask.

"Why is that Max?" 99's blue eyes blinked behind the round glass eye pieces in her GP-5's face piece.

Max jerked a thick gloved finger over his shoulder as he grumped.

"While we were listening to THAT, I think SPRING arrived!"

"Olympus to Valhalla, we authenticate—" Wilson's voice rumbled into the microphone of his head set like boulders in a landslide down a mountain as he spoke, seated at the communications console. "—Simon and Garfunkel should avoid bridges."

With Gerd standing at his shoulder waiting, Wilson listened to the voice filtering over his headset's headphone in his right ear. After a few seconds, Wilson's growled a reply.

"Acknowledged Valhalla. Till our next check in. Olympus out."

With that, Wilson turned his cold granite cheek-boned face and jaw to Gerd and reported.

"Prescheduled communications check with Cheyenne Mountain Complex cleared. We're good for the next half hour."

"Gut. Check und make sure zer veapon system is functioning." Gerd said as he turned to the right wall.

"You want me da disable it?" Wilson asked as he eased out of his chair and swaggered over to the semi-circular central console.

"Nein." Gerd answered. "Just in case zumthing goes wrong und vee are attacked. Klehr! Vhat's zer status of zer gas een zer base?"

Klehr seated now at the consoles along the right side wall with the bodies of Higgs, Cahn and Soule still laying where they had fell in graceless death, eyes staring at nothing. The KAOS agent turned a knob at Cahn's station and checked a readout on a monitor before replying

"Shuper Shleep concentrations throughout zer base holzing at vun thousand eight hundred und sixty parts per million."

"Alvight, set up zer velay now und let's make sure vee don't air zer place till ve're done." Gerd smirked with a twitch of his eyebrows as he slumps down to relax in a chair at the left side wall completely oblivious to Major Parish's body laying near it, his remaining eye focused at nothing while blood spread out from the crater in his face that had been his right eye.

SS-19 stood at the right side of the red W900 watching as forklifts driven by KAOS agents eased pallets of the fuel canisters into the 8.5 feet wide trailer via the opened sides. Each pallet held 8 canisters of the fuel, arranged in 2 rows of 4 so the pallets had to be carried and loaded lengthwise by the forklifts onto the trailer. She watched as the forklifts loaded the pallets forming 4 pallets per row across the width of the trailer bed enabling them to form 4 columns with 12 pallet in each, totalling 48 pallets per trailer. She had considered stacking another layer on top but she realized it was too risky for the transport. As it was, they would have over 700 canisters in total once the mission was completed.

As SS-19 watched, the red W900's trailer was already nearing it's full capacity with forklifts on either side loading and forming the 3rd last row of pallets. However, she could hear the ongoing arguments from the other semi which was beginning to become a concern. Her low heeled boots clacking against the hangar floor, she walked around the towering red tractor unit towards the other vehicle.

"C'mon you commy clutz! Would ya FIX that thing already?!" Drapikowski waved his arms in frustration where he stood on the floor next to the trailer of the matt-gray truck.

Both the dark green and the matt-brown Land Rovers were still inside the trailer and Mikhail was now bent under the hood of the matt-brown one.

"Zatknis', stupid Amerikanskiy!" Mikhail's muffled growl emitted through his gas mask as he struggled to find the problem in the engine while the canister filter dangling from the snout of his GP-5's snout and swinging about each time he moved his head, caused the metal cylinder to hit the engine block setting off a dull clang that made his ears ring.

"Der'mo!" yelled Yuri from under the hood of the other Land Rover at the head of the trailer and he stood. "I zone zee anyding wrong!"

Quittner next to Drapikowski growled throwing his gloved hands at both the driver and co-driver.

"How you two drive ANYDING?!"

"Vhy ees zhis taking so long?"

The voice softer than all their yelling spun Drapikowski and Quittner around as though a hand had yanked them by the shoulders. Both men stood shaking in their overshoe boots as they faced the black form and veil of SS-19 as she stood there with emerald mist churning around her knees as though they issued from her.

"S…s…s…sorry boss!" Drapikowski stammered and pointed back at the trailer. "It…it…it's not our fault! Something's wrong with the Land Rovers and the comrades here CAN'T figure it out!"

"Zayz IDIOT who don't' know engine from a konnaya telezhka!" Yuri spat through his GP-5 at Drapikowski

"Hey!" Drapikowski whirled on the KAOS agents on the trailer with arms out stretched. "Drivers and mechanics!—" He brought his gloved hands in to his own chest. "—Used-car-SALES-man! FIGURE IT OUT! Can't you…yikes!"

The diminutive KAOS agent and the bigger Quittner literally jumped apart as SS-19 seemed to glide past them sending emerald mist flooding to either side of her. Placing a gloved hand on the floor of the trailer, she somehow effortlessly flipped herself without a sound up onto the trailer floor, with snakes of green gas clinging to her lower body. Mikhail jerked back equally fast as his colleagues on the floor as SS-19 leaned forward under the hood and somehow without removing her veil seemed capable of seeing perfectly inside the dim interior of the engine.

As the KAOS agents looked on, the engine of another forklift is heard along with the screech of it's tires before the vehicle came into view in the space between the rear bumpers of the two semi-trailers with a pallet of fuel canisters occupying it's fork.

"So zhey just ORDERED your transfer to zer Reichssicherheitshauptamt vithout ANY vequest from you?!" Meisinger asked as he lifted his overshoe boot from the clutch of the forklift.

"Jaaaa!" Hayler groaned under his GP-5 with a toss of his cowled head, sending his canister filter flipping up to hit him on the forehead as he jumped form the forklift. "Ow!"

The KAOS agent stumbled as he hit the floor, gloved had on his forehead, MP-40 clacking on his back. Recovering, he started walking in between the 2 trailers with Meisinger following, explaining as he did.

"Eet seems, zhere ees zuch a thing as doing your job TOO vell. All zhose medals I von und my face plastered all over zhose recruitment posters! Zum officer een Amt Three vith too much free time vesearched my family und somehow determined my Aryan roots dated all zer vay back to sixteen-eighty-five! Vhich vas vhy Hinkel hated me cause HIS Aryan ancestry vent back only to eighteen-ten."

"Ees zhat true bout your family's ancestry?" Meisinger asked behind him.

"I have NO izea!" Hayler shrugged tossing up his arms as they approached Drapikowski and Quittner, waiting on the floor next to the trailer looking up at SS-19. "I mean, my fazher und muzzer alvays told me zhey vere descended from a long line of Svedish nobility all zer vay back to zer times of King Charles zer Tvelf. Only person I knew outside my immediate family vas uncle Alfred who spent ees life getting drunk, groping vomen at parties und peeing eento zer hosts' favourite potted plants!—" Pausing and tilting his circular eye pieces up at the ceiling, Hayler contemplated. "—Zhough I tink zer DRUNK part vas just zumzing he made up as an ex-CUSE to grope vomen und pee eento potted plants. Hallo! Zer uzzer trailer ees full. Vhat's zer matter hya?"

"What does it look like?!" Drapikowski grumbled gesturing at the vehicles. "Damn Land Rovers won't start!"

"Vell zhat puts a bit of a crimp een things." Was Hayler's muffled remark as he and Meisinger looked back towards the rear of the trailers where 3 more forklifts were arriving with the galvanized steel pallets of fuel canisters and veering about trying to find a place to set their cargo.

"S-S-Nineteen!"

Hayler turned at the voice to see Kerstin striding down the path formed by the two vehicles from the direction of the traction unit and internal building. She was pushing a pallet truck loaded with about a dozen white plastic box shaped containers, each about 12 x 10 x 10 inches in size and bearing the Red Cross symbol on their lids.

"Oh Kerstin!" Hayler greeted with a wave.

Kerstin barely registered him as she continued.

"Vhere do you vant zer antidotes?"

Without emerging from under the hood, SS-19 answered.

"Distribute zhem evenly among zer Lund Rovers."

"Vight." Kerstin nodded and finally looked back to Hayler asking in a bored tone as her emerald eyes focused on him. "Hayler ees eet?"

"Zhat's vight! Ow!" Hayler nodded vigorously and thus caused his filter canister to swing up and hit his forehead again.

"Be a useful animal vould you und start loading these on zer two Land Rovers at zer parking lots."

"Jawohl!" Hayler almost nodded before stopping himself catching his "snout" and putting up a gloved thumb as he walked over to take hold of the pallet truck remarking as he gestured at Kerstin's flight duty uniform. "So you finally found zer antidote you dlopped! Zhat's good! More zhen I can say for my M-P-Forty back on Crete I'm afraid. _Sigh."_

"S-S-Nineteen—" Kerstin said with her hands on her hips causing the baggy flight suit to have trouble containing the generous hills of her chest as Hayler began pushing the pallet truck towards the rear of the trailers. "—eef vee can't fix zhese Lund Rovers let's just abandon zhem. Zhere are uzzer vehicles here vee can use."

SS-19 backed away and straightened with a long thick cable in her gloved hands, holding it close to her veil to examine it.

"Checked ignishen coil! It O-KAY!" Mikhail declared squinting through the round eye pieces of his GP-5 gas mask at the cable SS-19 held.

SS-19 looked at one end of the thick cable followed by another.

"Not zer coil." Her wintry alto reply came through her veil. "Zer high tension cables. Zheir sheaths have been sliced opened at both ends und resealed back vith some form of bonding agent!"

As muffled exclamations emitted through gas masks and Kerstin watched intently, SS-19 pulled a Swiss Army Knife from a pouch and somehow managed to extricate a blade with just one hand's gloved finger and sliced into the thick insulation of the cable before prying the cut edges apart. Her eyes narrowed behind her veil at what she found.

"Zer copper vires inside have been cut!" she announced tossing the cable aside.

Hayler having reached the rear of the trailer with the pallet truck stopped in his tracks at SS-19's exclamation.

"Mikhail, Yuri! Get zer spare cables und replace zhem." SS-19 ordered as she jumped off the trailer to the floor. "Vunce zhat is done, Drapikowski und Quittner, get zer Lund Rovers out und help zer loading."

"Right boss!" Drapikowski declared and climbed back onto the trailer with Quittner as Yuri and Mikhail scrambled to get the spare parts.

"Sabotage? How?" Kerstin inquired. "Everyvun ov zer hangar's personnel are eizher asleep or dead."

SS-19 was unreadable as she stood in the swirling knee high green mists, an unmoving tower of black. It took a few moments before she asked.

"Did you managed to find out from zer Chief HOW he knew avout owver actual target?"

"Nein." Kerstin shook her head. "He vas most secretive about zhat. Vee didn't have time to interrogate him und vee vanted him unharmed."

"Unless…zhere are impostors among us." SS-19 pondered, her head turning slightly making the veil rustle against her chest.

"Parzon me!—"

Both women turned to see Hayler back where they were while behind him, Meisinger continued to push the pallet truck to the parking lots.

"—Kerstin. Just a wild thought vut…did you by any chance dlop your antidote for a vhile und vas vareling zhese most fashionable Made-By-KAOS hazmat suits a few minutes ago?"

Kerstin's emerald eyes flared greener than the gas at their knees as she scowled.

"Nein."

"Vell!" Hayler announced cocking his head to the side as he turned slightly in the direction of the tunnel entrance with a gloved finger raised. "Een zhat case. Eizher I bumped eento zhose impostors who schnitt zer vires or—vun of owver men has a veeeery big secret!"

The large control panel in the wall of the warehouse was located 20 feet to the left of the tunnel entrance. Max had the outer plating of the panel off, revealing countless multi-coloured wires attached to it while 99 stood to his right, her back towards the tunnel entrance. Forklifts continued barrelling around the warehouse extracting the silver pallets of fuel canisters with seemingly greater speed as time went by and the KAOS agents grew more adapted to the layout of the location.

"Oh Max hurry!" 99 gasped anxiously through her gas mask. "They must have at least one truck loaded by now."

"I'm trying Ninety-Nine! This is extremely complex!" Max exclaimed, pliers and screwdriver in his gloved hands as he searched through the wires. "Alright! Get ready da dash into the tunnel Ninety-Nine! I am ABSOLUTELY sure I got it this time!"

"Right Max!"

Max snipped a red and gold wire and both looked up at the pinnacle of the tunnel's arch. Unfortunately, the horizontal slab of steel across the top remained where it was. Max grimaced behind his GP-5.

"Would you believe, ALMOST absolutely sure I got it?"

"Keep trying Max!"

Max delved back into the wires again, his gloved fingers searching through them, tracing their connections.

"I REALLY wish these military circuits would come with easy to read labels like "CUT HERE TO STOP KAOS PLOT"! After all, we secret agents pay taxes too you know!—" Max grumbled through his mask as his head remained bent over the wires. "—Least they could DO is make things easier for us when we're trying to save the world!"

"Max just keep trying!" 99 urged, leaning towards him. "They could discover us any second!"

"Don't worry Ninety-Nine!" Max declared looking up at her mask for a second before turning back to his work and as he worked, elaborated. "If they discover us, we'll definitely KNOW about it! I mean, they wouldn't just send ONE person after us. They would send at least a lieutenant, likely that girl Kerstin with at least four men, one of whom is likely the one who you bumped into with the highest chances of identifying us in these suits and Kerstin would be armed with a semi-automatic pistol and augmented by the automatic weapons of her men which would consist of one MP-Forty, a Beretta M-Twelve, one Walther M-P-L and an F-One for an optimal combination of firepower."

99's cowled head tilted as her blue eyes narrowed behind her GP-5's round glass eye pieces.

"That's amazing Max! How did you arrive at such a precise tactical assessment?"

"It's SIMPLE Ninety-Nine!" Max declared as he lifted and turned his head to her while his gloved hands remained within the tangle of wires. "I'm a highly trained secret agent! I have YEARS of experience battling the forces of evil and rottenness! I have nerves of steel! I have the eyes of an eagle! I have the mind of a master military tactician! So with just a single, split second turn of my head earlier—I saw Kerstin standing there with Hayler and three other KAOS agents and all those weapons I mentioned pointed at us!"

The breath escaped 99's parted soft lips behind the face piece of her GP-5 as she swivelled on her overshoe boots to find just 5 feet away from them—Kerstin standing there with her Browning Hi-Power aimed at them along with the KAOS agent Hayler on her right at the wall with his MP-40 submachine gun aimed at hip level while on her left stood a taller KAOS agent whose HAZMAT suit struggled to contain his boulder like shoulders and his GP-5 mask could not hide his oval shaped face and fearsome, unrelenting dark eyes behind the circular eye pieces as he held his Beretta M12 at chest level, aimed at them. Stepping out from behind the trio were another two KAOS agents, both approximately the same height and shorter than the big one. One was slender, aiming a Walther MPL while the other was slightly stocky and held an F1 submachine gun with it's curious top mounted 34 round clip.

As 99's slender shoulders sagged in dismay under the bulky hazmat suit and both she and Max raised their gloved hands, Kerstin's emerald eyes glittered more distinctively than the green hued lighting of the warehouse as her luscious lips parted with a smile as cold as the mountain air.

"Guten Abend. Velcome to Area-Fifty-Three-D—your FINAL resting place."

Max lifted a gloved finger as he held his tools in his hands and asked.

"If I said I wasn't tired, could we keep looking?"

The Hi-Power clicked as Kerstin's thumb locked back the hammer fully and bolts on every one of the automatic weapons clacked sharply causing 99 to back towards Max as he asked.

"So that's a "no" then?"

TO BE CONTINUED

Written by

 **Resurgent** **-class**

 **Congratulations! You've done it! The end of another part of this pentalogy! Thank you so very much and if you're not concussed by now, it is a testament to your will power and likely constant looping of Carrie Underwood's, The Champion on your laptop! Any case, conclusion in Part 5 and I hope you'll all finish it after bearing with me for so long! Feel free da let out your frustrations in the reviews!**

 **As always, if anyone is interested, some Trivia!**

SS-19 to Lacza: "Lacza! **Ideje, hogy menjen**."

It's time to go!

Leoni to SS-19: " **Jäger** Two to Jäger **Le commandant**. Copper Road, **en vue**. Turning in twenty secoons."

 **Hunter** **Commander** **in view**

Max mentions one of the KAOS Kenworths was painted with the logo of _Melnick's Home Entertainment & Electronics_ and he wonders if it is a KAOS front. This fan-fic conceptualizes that this company is also run by Melnick Archer the KAOS agent who runs Melnick Furniture Warehouse featured in Season 5, Episode 21, And Only Two Ninety-Nine. But perhaps at this time, Melnick is not suspected yet by CONTROL of being with KAOS.

One of the KAOS Kenworth trucks later changes their logo on the road to Jupiter Electronics. This company name is featured in Season 4, Episode 22, Shock It to Me, where in the pre-title sequence, Max is undercover as a truck driver to trap the KAOS agents stealing electronic equipment and the truck Max is driving, is from Jupiter Electronics.

Leoni at Ireson's wreckless driving: " **Pas de sommeil!** Pas de sommeil! You going to get us killlt you stupide anglais!"

 **No sleeping!**

The tunnels that the KAOS Kenworth trucks used to effect the change of their license plates and box trailer logos, do not exist as far as I know. I included them solely to facilitate the plot.

Ancaster mentions he won the Lamont Cranston Award for Shadowing twice. This award is mentioned in the original series, Season 4, Episode 7, A Tale of Two Tails, in which 99 has won it 3 times.

SS-19 to Leoni on spotting the vehicle trailing them:"Gut. Tell Ireson, **c** **e devrait être le premier véhicule à travers la fumée** **.** "

 **it should be the first vehicle through the smoke**

SS-19's instruction to Ireson through Leoni: "Gut. Jäger Two _ **. Dis à Jäger Vun, observez**_ _ **discrètement.**_ **Reste calme.** "

 **Tell Jäger Vun, observe discreetly. Stay calm**

Baidukov about Ireson's driving: " **Sumasshedshiy anglichanin**! Wat he doing?!"

 **Crazy Englishman**!

Specchi about Ireson's driving: " **Pazzo L'inglese** can't do anyding right!"

 **Crazy English**!

Lacza about Ireson's driving: "Zat **őrült bolond** eez going to TIP us ovar!"

 **Crazy fool**

SS-19: " **Compris.** **À quelle distance sommes-nous de la prochaine ville**?"

 **Understood.** **How far are we from the next city?**

Leoni: "Eeeeh. **Je peux le voir maintenant!** Ten minutes maybe at present speed!"

 **I can see it now!**

SS-19: "Gut. **Signalez l'autre camion. Ensuite, prenez les devants**."

 **Signal the other truck. Then take the lead.**

Leoni: "Compris Jäger le commandant!"

Yuri : "Mikhail! Wilde Jagd One **pozadi nas! Pust' oni vedut**!"

 **Behind us! Let them lead!**

The names Mount Colossal and Mount Colossal Wilderness are fictional but their locations and size are based on Mount Massive (one of Colorado's fourteeners) and the Mount Massive Wilderness respectively. Just like in Season 1, Episode 24, Stakeout on Blue Mist Mountain, far as I know, there is no such mountain as Blue Mist Mountain. Although I'm not sure if the writers based it on the Blue Ridge Mountains (anybody out there knows?)

The X-10 laser-powered missile detector installed inside the Harriers at Area 53D is my conceptualisation of an earlier model or generation of the more advanced X-11 laser-powered missile detector featured as the objective for the Chief's kidnapping by Siegfried in Season 2, Episode 3, A Spy for a Spy.

The other objective of KAOS in this fan-fic, the SRP-50 solid-state rocket propellant is featured as an effective but soon-to-be out-of-date due to a new fuel that the British is researching and will soon share with their allies. The British fuel refers to the rocket fuel that Professor Alex Chain perfected and was sharing with other Western scientists in the original series, Season 2, Episode 24, The Expendable Agent. This fan-fic conceptualizes that KAOS knew about the new fuel being developed by the British and hopes to sell the SRP-50 first to gain a dual profit. The SRP-50 is also stated to be invented by Professor Einstock who is mentioned by Max in The Expendable Agent to be their top scientist also attending the conference held by Professor Alex Chain.

The code phrase used by Gerd, _The migrating birds fly low over the sea. Shade-less windows admit no light,_ is taken from Season 1, Episode 11, Too Many Chiefs.

Hayler chastises Drapikowski and Baidukov for not fighting fair and says "Und you call yourselves KILLERS!" This is taken from a similar line in the original series Season 2, Episode 17, Someone Down Here Hates Me, where Siegfried berates his underlings about failing to eliminate Max.

In the box trailer, 99 comments that if KAOS succeeds in getting the fuel and X-10, the entire civilized world is in danger and Max added "Not to mention our side." This joke taken from at least 2 episodes in the original series that I know (correct me if I'm wrong), Season 2, Episode 26, Appointment in Sahara, and Season 3, Episode 13, The Mysterious Dr. T.

99: Sometimes, I wonder whether everything we do…arms races in weapons of mass destruction, all the fighting and killing. Is it really worth anything in the end?"

Max: "Especially if we don't win. I mean, after all, we represent everything good, pure and decent in this world! Shouldn't we get to kill, maim and wipe out everyone ELSE on the planet FIRST?!"

This is a slight modification of the joke, from the original series:

99: Sometimes I wonder if we're any better, Max.

Max: "What are you talking about, Ninety-Nine? We have to shoot and kill and destroy. We represent everything that's wholesome and good in the world."

Far as I can tell (please add on if I missed out others) it appeared in Season 2, Episode 11, Island of the Darned, and in the feature film Get Smart, Again!

Max commented about the Chief being out in the cold and takes comfort in the fact that they don't end up in a giant freezer every day. This is of course a joke aimed at the fact that in the original episode that follows this fan-fic in terms of timeline, Satan Place, the Chief indeed ends up inside a freezer!

The authentication phrase the Chief uses about Pussycat visiting the Queen in London is featured at least twice in the original series, Season 3, Episode 7, One of Our Olives Is Missing, and Season 5, Episode 2, Ironhand.

In the fight between the Chief and Kerstin, the Chief uses his head as a battering ram. This unusual manoeuvre, more for comic effect rather than actual practicality I guess, is depicted at least twice in the entire original series. The first being the episode immediately following this fan-fic in terms of timeline, Satan Place, by the Chief in the opening fight scene as 2 KAOS agents abducts him and second in Season 2, Episode 29, A Man Called Smart, Part 2, by the female KAOS agent disguised as a nurse against Max to successfully facilitate her escape!

The Ring Communicator used by the KAOS advance team is featured in the original series in Season 2, Episode 1, Anatomy of a Lover.

Gerd to the rest of the advance team: "Hol die Kanister jetzt raus! Schnell!"

Get the canisters out now! Fast!

Gerd to the rest of the advance team: "Die Hauptkanäle sind hier drin!"

The main channels are in here!

Gerd to Kerstin: "Kerstin! Überlass das ihnen. Lass uns gehen!"

Leave that to them. Let's go!

The KAOS agent Wilson is inspired by the character of the same name from one of my favourite novels, Shane by Jack Schaefer. Of course, the KAOS agent in this fan-fic is based on the film version of Wilson, portrayed by the late but ever unparalleled Jack Palance who brought an immortal presence of cold, precision menace to the role (again my descriptions do no justice). In my conceptualisation, the KAOS agent Wilson, is in every essence, Jack Wilson (Stark Wilson in the novel), from the film, plucked out of time into the ideal employment. This explains his favoured method of killing with a quick draw of a revolver and the way he fires it by using the hammer, which was the way single-action Colts of the old west were largely utilized. The KAOS agent's fake name 'Jackson' is a reference to Wilson's similar first name in the film. And my favourite aspect of Jack Wilson, the black leather glove he wore on his gun hand before he shoots, is replicated here in the fan-fic. This is my salute to the Get Smart series' episodes which parody the old west ie Season 4, Episode 17, Tequila Mockingbird, and Season 5, Episode 5, The Treasure of C. Errol Madre.

Kerstin to Gerd: "Gerd you **wahnsinnig dummkopf**! Zheir flak jackets…"

 **Insane idiot**

KAOS Agents chorusing in various languages at Ireson's driving: " **Glupyy anglichanin!**...dumbass BRIT!...I going to KICK zhat shtupid **angol férfi félfenék**!...I'm gonna take this truck and DRIVE it over his ASS!...I have zeen DRUNKEN **Kühe**

drive PANZERS more smoothly!..."

 **Stupid Englishman! Englishman's buttock! Cows**

Mikhail to Yuri: " **My dolzhny byt' ryadom"**

 **We should be near.**

Max mentions his friend Sid Krimm featured in the original series, Season 3, Episodes 16 & 17, The Little Black Book Parts 1 & 2, portrayed by the late comedian extraordinaire and close friend of Don Adams, Don Rickles.

Max to 99: "You bet your sweet life!" This phrase is taken from the original series, Season 2, Episode 24, The Expendable Agent.

Max uses the catchphrase "That is the second biggest…." to describe the moving slab of the mountain wall. This phrase is featured in the original series in Season 1, Episode 6, Washington 4, Indians 3, when Max describes the Red Cloud's giant rocket-propelled arrow.

Upon realising KAOS had used Super Sleep inside Area 53D, Max suggests 2 plans, one good and one bad and it is revealed that surrendering and joining KAOS (the bad sounding plan) is actually the good one. This joke is featured in the original series Season 4, Episode 26, The Not-So-Great Escape, Part 2 in which the bad sounding plan which actually is the humdinger, is all the CONTROL POWs getting into a package and getting mailed home to freedom. Anyone can recall any other times this joke appears in the original series?

Lacza at SS-19 using a syrette: "Mi az?"

"What is that?"

Gerd to Klehr after their semis enters Area 53D: "Sie sind drin. Schließe die Türen."

"They are in. Close the doors."

Quittner about the Land Rover not starting: "Hülye dzsip! Engin nem indul el!"

"Stupid Jeep! Engine does not start!"

Quittner at Drapikowski "YOU fix engin you **apró amerikai**!"

 **Tiny American**

Max being incapable of supporting the forklift driver's weight in a fireman's carry is a more succinct version of this running gag, featured several times in the original series where Max struggles continuously to lift someone onto his shoulders, among them Season 1, Episode 8, The Day Smart Turned Chicken, the episode immediately preceding this fanfic, where Max has problems lifting The Cowboy, Season 2, Episode 29, A Man Called Smart, Part 2, where Max tries to carry a bad guy who held 99 captive, Season 3, Operation Ridiculous, the diminutive ambassador whom Max later has no problem carrying in a bicep curl position and the canonically questionable feature film, The Nude Bomb as Max tries to lift, drag, yank, pull etc Agent 22 at the expense of her dignity…sigh…just my opinion but it could have been a great film if they'd let the original series writers helm the film.

Hayler upon bumping into 99 accidentally : "Hoppla!"

Oops!

Hayler to 99 whom he thinks is Kerstin: "Kerstin! **So leid! So leid!** It's me, Hayler!

 **So sorry!**

99 pretending to be Kerstin to Hayler: " **Vergiss es!** Keep loazing! Schnell!"

 **Forget it!**

Hayler about being stuck in a tree during the Battle of Crete: "Und zhen, as eef zhat vas not bad enuv—to put zer **kirsche** on zer **S** **chwarzwälder Kirschtorte**."

 **Cherry Black Forest Cake/Gateau**

Hayler retelling how he was shot in the buttock: "platz-wo-ich-sitze!"

"Place-where-I-sit!"

Yuri at Drapikowski: "Zayz IDIOT who don't' know engine from a **konnaya telezhka**!"

 **Horse-drawn cart**

My sincerest apologies to any readers who are/were members of the U.S Military, for my inaccurate and off-key descriptions of military protocols and decorum. My research as with everything else is limited to Wikipedia, action novels and whatever traumatic memories of NCIS I can bare to recall. More of a Star Trek guy myself as you can tell from the way the Air Force personnel get along with each other across ranks! So sorry! Please feel free to comment in your reviews so I can improve in future fan-fics.


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